Californians aren’t exactly known for their stuffy workplace attire. Even so, Lancaster, Calif., Mayor R. Rex Parris wants to forbid all city employers from requiring workers to don the enemy of the casual wardrobe: neckties.

At a council meeting this week, Parris asked the city attorney to look into whether such a policy is feasible.

The seemingly random proposal is a matter of public health, Parris said. Last week, the mayor came across a new study published in the journal Neuroradiology that suggests wearing neckties may lower blood flow to the brain, potentially curbing creativity and analytical thinking. The study contends that restricting circulation by such an amount — 7.5 percent on average, according to the research — could have fatal implications for someone with high blood pressure.

“I spend a lot of hours every week on an elliptical or a bike just to increase blood flow to my brain,” Parris said, “and it turns out every morning when I put on a tie I’m diminishing it.”

The mayor’s proposal comes at a tenuous time for the tie.

The late Steve Jobs’ iconic uniform of black turtleneck and blue jeans — sans tie, of course — inspired many a think piece, and a generation of techies followed suit (good luck spotting a tie on the Facebook campus). In 2015, the New York City Commission on Human Rights released guidance on gender identity and gender expression protections, which clarified that employers who enforce policies that require men to wear ties or women to wear skirts could technically be violating the law.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.