What led to BB's dress code circular, will any action be taken against those involved?

Following widespread criticism, the Bangladesh Bank has withdrawn the new dress code that barred female employees from wearing short-sleeved or short-length dresses and leggings and advised to wear plain headscarves or hijabs.

Bite-Sized: What led to BB's dress code circular?

The withdrawal came following the instruction of Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur who was outside the country when the decision on dress code was taken on 21 July without his consent.

Contacted by The Business Standard in the wee hours of today (24 July), Governor Mansur had expressed surprise over the matter.

"I'm surprised to see the news. I am currently out of the country and will certainly look into the issue shortly," he said.

However, Bangladesh Bank did not take any action against those involved with this instruction which sparked widespread criticism on social media damaging the regulator's reputation.

The directive on dress code issued by the central bank's Human Resources Department was approved by Deputy Governor Md Zakir Hossain Chowdhury when the director of this department is Nasima Sultana, the executive director is Md Sirajul Islam.

When the directive drew huge criticism on social media, central bank's Executive Director and Spokesperson Arif Hossain came up with an explanation.

On the first statement on 24th July through a WhatsApp group, Arif explained that "the advisory directive discourages overly ornate or extravagant clothing in the office without any restriction on wearing of burqas or hijabs by female staff members."

However, in a few minutes, he issued a revised statement excluding the words about permitting to wear burqas or hijabs.

When talking with the Business Standard, several senior executives of Bangladesh Bank expressed surprise about using words about dress code for female employees saying they could simply advise to wear formal attire in office.

What was the directive:

The directive asked its female staff members to wear sarees, salwar-kameez with dupattas, or other modest and professional attire. The directive also discouraged wearing short-sleeved or short-length dresses and leggings by women.

It also said female employees are permitted to wear formal shoes or sandals and may wear plain headscarves or hijabs if they choose.

In addition, male employees were asked to avoid jeans and gabardine, and to wear full or half-sleeved formal shirts with formal pants. Violation of the dress code may be treated as a breach of discipline, it added.

Spokesperson Arif Hossain said the dress code directive aimed to promote uniformity and cohesion in the workplace.

"The idea is to ensure equality and unity in dress within the institution and avoid any psychological discomfort," he said. "Moreover, modest clothing is mandatory for both male and female employees in any professional environment."

"For female employees, the directive advises avoiding short-sleeved or short-length dresses and leggings. However, no one has been required or forced to wear a hijab," he added.

When asked whether anyone at Bangladesh Bank had worn inappropriate attire before the issuance of the directive, the spokesperson said, "No, no one did."

When asked why such a directive was necessary, he said, "Now, each batch entering the Bangladesh Bank includes 200-250 young recruits who have just graduated from universities. Some of them still exhibit behaviour typical of university life.

"So, this circular was issued to promote bonding among officers of all levels, both junior and senior," he added.

However, after the withdrawal decision, he said "Considering the social context of all levels of officers and employees working in Bangladesh Bank, a decision was taken that during respective departmental meetings they would advise employees to wear professional and elegant clothes during office hours."

"However, no policy decision was taken in this regard and no circular was issued in this regard," he said in a statement.