The days of China’s fashion bloggers posting their stylish” Outfit of the Day ( OOTD )” are over. Now, young white- collar workers ‘ social media feeds are full of a new trend: “disgusting work outfits ( 上班恶心穿搭 )”.
The trend has fresh urbanites posting their function clothes online, the more clumsy, uneven, and dirty the better. People are depicted in cartoon-style cotton socks and black high heels, cycling hats, and big brown wool sweaters with pink chic coats and cycling hats. Colors and styles fight, clothes are worn out and frayed, and gadgets make no sense. The tag” Why do young people generally wear dirty clothes to work” has received over 90 million views on the Foreign blogging platform Weibo. Millions of views have been recorded on Douyin ( China’s version of TikTok ) videos of users flaunting their ugly work outfits.
A chilly restaurant worker claimed her warm-up-priority outfit ( thick skin-colored leggings with fleece-lined sneakers ) attracted the ire of her boss in a social media post in September of last year. Workers now use poorly dressed and chaotic outfits to show their boredom with their monotonous, unpaid workdays, and to wear what they already have in their wardrobes rather than purchasing brand-new clothes. Additionally, it has grown into a rivals, with employees trying to use worse outfits than their peers.
” With a shabby salary and silly colleagues, who am I getting dressed up for? Besides, Grandma always said no to throw away old clothing and to preserve them for work”, reads one article with over 5, 600 “likes” on Weibo.
After the February holiday, when employees returned to their jobs, the fad became popular. The inspiration of employees is in part related to their apprehension to keep warm in the winter. Fresh urbanites recently started a similar craze by purchasing solid efficient clothing instead of spending money on more fashionable down jackets. Also, the style of young employees in Beijing’s Haidian city ( where many tech companies are based ) gained focus for its uniformity and practicality—Everyone wears a long black down coat, a waterproof jacket, and a slim down coat. ” Haidian Style” trended online as well.
The scene in the Haidian district of Beijing is depicted in this photo, which shows many workers working in a coat-dye with black down (screenshot from Xiaohongshu ).
In a poll on the online media program Huxiu in February, the top reasons people picked for wearing dirty clothes to work were “work is tiring, no mood]to worry about fashion ]” and “lack of income”. Although in the past, many workers may have wore expensive clothing to elevate their standing, but many now do n’t feel embarrassed about skipping while youth unemployment and economic pressures weigh on their wallets. The dirty clothes are often new purchases. They’re older items found in the abyss of clothes.
Some of the fashion designers have written about how ugly outfits are an expression of their separation from traditional work, calling themselves “employees who do n’t care about anything in the office.” Online users have also suggested that this amounts to a much more extensive process of “young persons adjusting the desk” to their own preferences.
Urban workers truly feel drained by long rides, extended function hours, and poor work compensation. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, people in China worked an average of 49 days per week in 2023, an increase from 47.9 hours in 2022. According to the China Academy of Urban Planning and Design’s Annual Commuting Monitoring Report of Major Cities, the ordinary walk in Beijing is 47 days, and new graduates spend the most time getting to work the year before. Many employees just believe they lack the time or desire to look good. As one popular prevent online goes:” Survival first, everyone else is wait”.
Hu Wei, a young company worker in Shanghai, told local news agency Shangguan News in February,” I have to leave no later than 8: 10 in the morning, then take two metro lines for at least 45 minutes to work. I occasionally also provide breakfast to the office. How can I choose good outfits in the moment?”
Not everyone is aware of these justifications. ” Dressing properly will help increase your financial leads …if you dress clean and bright for work, your emotional state will be the same”, reads one remark with over 400 “likes” on Weibo. Some people object to shoddy work attire because it makes them look stupid or because it highlights young people’s lack of ambition.
Young Chinese urbanites, tired and overworked, are “rebelling” by wearing “disgusting work outfits” (screenshot from Douyin )
Researchers are also examining the pattern. Lin Zeyu, a PhD student at Shanghai University’s School of Sociology and Political Science, explained to The Paper that, for women, the pattern represented a sensitivity to cultural expectations of their looks, while Ip Tsz Ting Penn, senior lecturer at Hong Kong Metropolitan University, suggested that the trend had resonated with younger workers due to the changes in their identity and appearance, including clothing, as they transitioned from students to employees. Since the end of February, the hashtag “disgusting work outfits resonate with young people” has received over 140 million views on Weibo.
Even official state media has commented. Some social media users framed the trend as a fun act of self-deprecation, and People’s Daily Online attempted to play down criticism of young people’s work ethic as a result.
Meanwhile, a paper article argued that having more freedom to choose what outfits you wear and how you dress. One netizen quoted in China Youth Daily on February 28 stated,” Wearing comfortable and casual attire allows one to concentrate on work. Even if young people do n’t dress well, they still perform their tasks diligently”. The issue is not with the people’s inadequate clothing, but rather a result of poor or unreasonable office working conditions.
The most recent online version of office work is known as the craze. Other buzzwords have recently appeared as a reflection of people’s desire to let go of their ambitions for high salaries and turn to”,” or a refusal to take part in the career rat race and”.” The film, released last December, was a surprise box office hit that hooked audiences with its satire of China’s corporate culture, office politics, and corruption.
Many young urban workers appear to be resigned to a life of office drudgery, but that does n’t mean they have to put in any extra effort. They prefer to stay warm and save their energy for after they finish their shift rather than dressing well and showing off their ambition. As one user on the lifestyle platform Xiaohongshu commented recently:” Dressing well wo n’t get you a raise”.