By KBC Associate 
Gen Z is known for bucking the trend: creating its own internet vocabulary, ditching phone calls for FaceTimes and investing in crypto over 401(k)s. Now, its boundary-busting habits are coming to the office. Some new — and potentially surprising — Gen Z workplace trends are emerging, including a desire for a “uniform.”
Though classic tenets like job stability and work-life balance remain important, what Gen Z is wearing to the office reflects this generation’s drastically different approach to work. Young workers who went to college during the pandemic or started their careers on Zoom valued the flexibility that otherwise-challenging period offered, and experts say they’re not ready to give it up.
Born between 1997 and 2012, the oldest Gen Zers are now 28. While many of these young adults are interested in fashion, thrifting and bold outfits, streamlining the morning routine has become a priority as they’re aging into the workforce, says TopResume career expert Amanda Augustine.
“We have seen a growing number of professionals, specifically Gen Z professionals on platforms like TikTok, that are basically sharing… a ‘uniform’ is a way to say it, but it’s really about having a formulaic work outfit,” Augustine says. “So it becomes their tried-and-true set of combinations or color palettes or silhouettes.”
A few years ago, throwing on nice “Zoom tops” with off-camera sweatpants was the M.O., explains Danielle Testa, an assistant professor at the Arizona State University FIDM (Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising). Now, as Gen Z is figuring out what to wear to work amid a rise of return-to-office mandates, the idea of a self-directed uniform is striking a chord. Although the trend can partially be attributed to economic pressures, it’s also tied to decision fatigue, she says.
Young folks, crucially, want to feel comfortable. That extends to all parts of an office job: Employers are finding that Gen Zers have little interest in sitting in swivel chairs in cubicles for 40 hours per week. These workers tend to be drawn to hybrid schedules that are part remote and part in-office, and they’re seeking out jobs that allow them to have a life outside of work.
Meanwhile, Gen Zers are developing habits that make going to the office easier and cheaper. Put bluntly, to the extent they have to commute into a brick-and-mortar office, they don’t want to stress about their outfit.
“You’re seeing this generation battle burnout and exhaustion, and want simplicity,” Testa says. “It’s not necessarily taking exactly what one TikToker is wearing and buying the same thing. It’s taking that as inspiration to find your own uniform.”
Asked what brands Gen Z is turning to for their work uniforms, Testa says the two top in her eyes are Abercrombie & Fitch (which she says evolved its previous frat-boy aesthetic to become a “more professional go-to”) and Aritzia, a favorite among young women for basic tops and professional trousers. Work uniform videos on social media feature rotations of solid-colored blouses with simple necklines, high-waisted neutral pants and outfits in jewel tones.
In modern times, the idea of a uniform for the office dates back to Steve Jobs’ black turtleneck and jeans look, which supposedly reduced the number of non-work things he had to think about in the day, increasing productivity. Former President Barack Obama also famously wore gray and blue suits nearly every day to, as he put it, “pare down decisions.”
Gen Z work uniforms are less monotonous than the iconic Jobs outfit, Testa says. Young people aren’t saying, “OK, I’m going to have five black t-shirts and five of the exact same Levi’s denim,” she explains.
Instead, it’s more like, “I know a simple button-up is a good look for me.” Or it might be about sticking to reliable colors: “I know a muted yellow is going to work really well for me, so if I’m in a rush in the morning, I can throw something on, and I feel confident,” she says.
Workplace traditions become a ‘thing of the past’
While Gen Z seems to be figuring out what to wear to the office, the generation still isn’t sold on the idea of physically showing up there as often as was expected in the past.
As graduating college students are preparing to enter the workforce, 82% say they would like to be remote one or more days of the week, according to a recent survey from ZipRecruiter. But a large chunk wants to go into the office on a hybrid basis several days per week, perhaps dressed in “uniform.” Just 44% say they’d like to be remote three or more days per week.
This all ties into a preference for flexible schedules, which 90% of these students say is important. The ZipRecruiter poll suggests that employers need to do better in this area if they want to attract top Gen Z talent because only 29% of recent grads say that their hours are, in fact, “very flexible.”
Other surveys have come to similar findings. According to Morning Consult, over 80% of employed Gen Z adults say they “always,” “often” or “sometimes” feel “too tired after work to enjoy their personal lives.” That’s the highest of any age group.
And while CEOs are talking about increasing productivity with artificial intelligence, doing more with less staff and requiring in-office work, they’re encountering friction with young workers who aren’t necessarily buying into it. Even the concept of working 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., which has been ingrained in American work culture for a century, is being called into question. According to a report from Monster, 67% of the class of 2025 say the 9-to-5 is a “thing of the past.”
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