Company being unreasonable?

Question

In Canada it's extremely popular to wear a read poppy from the beginning of Nov. through Nov 11th for Remembrance Day. At my place of work, a friend of mine was told to take it off because we're not allowed to wear anything on our uniform. This is a chain retail store. Tomorrow, it's remembrance day, and i want to wear it to work, because me and my husband had family that fought in both world wars. Would you guys wear it anyway? It's not like it's offensive.

Everyone wears red poppies, even news anchors on TV, my professors. It isn't political, it's to show war veterans respect. The poppy is small, can't interfere with the uniform. I think it's so ignorant. Not sure if it's because the company is American that they aren't allowing us.

Answer 1

I don't agree with 2 points in riversconfluence's answer. The Poppy is not political. Canadians wear the poppy in remembrance of all men and women who have lost their lives through war; in the fight for freedom.
Also, those people who you say 'are selling poppies on street corners' is not quite right. Those people are members of the Royal Canadian Legion who are volunteering their own time to raise funds which will help ensure that the memories and sacrifices of our war veterans are never forgotten. We as Canadians make our donation to the box and in return we receive a poppy to wear.
Now in answer to the orginal question and in my own opinion, I would wear the poppy regardless. And perhaps this should be brought to the attention of your HR department.

Answer 2

Find yourself a new job, and then tell us what chain has told you that you can't wear the red poppy so we can quit shopping there. Any retail chain which would suppress a custom which honors veterans can go eat mud. (That is, if the custom is generally regarded as safe and within bounds of normal social behavior. Flower-wearing would get more sympathy from me than hanging by your fingers from a bridge or showing up at work in the buff as a symbolic gesture to honor veterans.)

I work for a government agency; we are not allowed to wear partisan articles (i.e., "Vote for me" shirts or campaign buttons). I don't think anyone at my workplace would construe honoring veterans as a partisan issue, and I believe the poppies would be allowed. (Political poetry probably is off their radar anyway.)

The exception would be if they can demonstrate that the flowers present some hazard. (i.e., allergies, pins, whatever.) I doubt that this is their motivation; it sounds as though their motivation is to present their sales force as thousands of interchangeable units. If you wear something which makes you stand out as an individual, that could blow their whole peg/hole system.

"In Flanders fields the poppies grow. . . ."

Answer 3

The coverage corporation in basic terms has to swap the broken instruments and floor so with a small kitchen the quantity does not look unreasonable, use the money in the direction of a kitchen re vamp and don't use laminate flooring in the kitchen while you're able to upload to the £2000 have the kitchen re geared up with all new solid success

Answer 4

I know how you feel, we are not allowed to wear anything on our uniforms either, especially not anything even remotely political.
Maybe you could wear it to, and from work on your purse, or coat. Here, I've seen people put them in the inside corner of their windshield, but I think it is more to keep away people that are selling poppies on streetcorners, than to display them. But it is an idea, to put it in the car.

Answer 5

If a dress code is required, I believe you shoudln't be allowed. Maybe if it had something to do with religion/cultural as you would see certain people obligated to wear certain things when muslim or whatever, then yes. If it's a celebration thing, I believe not, just where it afterwards. It has nothing to do with strong moral values because you only wear it for like a week or something?