The guide, which was commissioned in February and, SNCF says, has now been withdrawn, offered advice to employees on how to dress and apply make-up in a manner that embodies “French elegance”, according to BFM TV, which was given access to the document.
While no obligations or dress rules were imposed in the 40-page guide, it set out ways in which employees could ‘correct’ and ‘balance’ their individual silhouettes while in uniform.
“French elegance isn’t just about wearing the TGV Inoui uniform. For teams that don’t wear it, such as those in Remote Customer Service, Supervision, or any other non-customer-facing role, French elegance is also part of the brand’s DNA.
"It’s lived, felt, and expressed at every moment. This guide is a tool at your disposal to support you, whether you wear the TGV Inoui uniform or not,” the document reads.
The guide uses drawings to illustrate male and female body shapes, with advice on dressing.
A woman with a triangular body shape should — it advises – avoid, “a tight skirt, large pockets on the hips” and favour, “a light or coloured top, structured jacket, shoulder pads, or wide collar” in order to, “rebalance the silhouette in the upper body”.
A man with a rounder figure should choose, “dark tops: a structured jacket with shoulder pads, straight or double-breasted cut. A jacket that covers the hips” in order to “lengthen the silhouette and visually slim the figure.”
It also includes a guide to appropriate make-up for women while at work.
The Sud Rail union demanded the document’s immediate withdrawal.
"The employment contract for sales agents stipulates only the wearing of the regulation uniform. Period,” it said in a letter sent to SNCF’s management.
“The company has no right to judge its employees’ bodies or exert any control over their physical appearance.
"Reading these pages, you'd think you were back in the 1960s. These guidelines … target women and establish an aesthetic imperative that has no professional basis whatsoever.”
It’s not the first time this century that SNCF has riled unions with a dress code document. Sud Rail pointed out that “in 2014, a similar guide was distributed, and management had to withdraw it after it sparked outrage among employees and unions, precisely for the same reasons”.
SNCF Voyageurs said it was investigating how the document came to be shared to employees. It told BFM TV the internal guide was a “working document [which] does not at all reflect the company’s values.
“It was distributed without approval and was immediately removed from the SharePoint site where it was located. An investigation is underway to determine how it was drafted and published,” the train operator said in a statement.
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