[Michlib-l] Dress Code Inquiry

Wed Aug 20 14:23:30 EDT 2025

Is it legal to spend taxpayer money on clothing for staff? 

Deb Hemmye 
Library Director 
Huntington Woods Public Library 
26415 Scotia Road 
Huntington Woods, MI 48070 
248-543-9720, ext. 686 

Currently reading The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook, by Hampton Sides 

From: "Michlib" <michlib-l at mcls.org> 
To: "Abby Bond" <bonda at libcoop.net>, "Autumn Smith" <smith at blissfieldlibrary.org> 
Cc: "Michlib" <michlib-l at mcls.org> 
Sent: Wednesday, August 20, 2025 1:17:31 PM 
Subject: Re: [Michlib-l] Dress Code Inquiry 

Abby- You read my mind! 😉 

Clare 

Clare D. Membiela, MLS, J.D. 

Library Law Consultant 

Library of Michigan 

[ mailto:MembielaC at michigan.gov | MembielaC at michigan.gov ] 

517-335-8132 

The research and resources above are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem. 

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From: Michlib-l <michlib-l-bounces at mcls.org> On Behalf Of Abby Bond via Michlib-l 
Sent: Wednesday, August 20, 2025 12:27 PM 
To: Autumn Smith <smith at blissfieldlibrary.org> 
Cc: michlib-l at mcls.org 
Subject: Re: [Michlib-l] Dress Code Inquiry 

CAUTION: This is an External email. Please send suspicious emails to [ mailto:abuse at michigan.gov | abuse at michigan.gov ] 

I think a big consideration should be how many staff members you have, how much turnover, and how many shirts each staff member should have to get through the week. Does your budget easily cover that cost? Does the Board member expect the staff to pay for their own shirts? 

It might not even be a question on whether it's a good idea or not, but are you willing to spend the money on it? 

On Wed, Aug 20, 2025 at 10:59 AM Autumn Smith via Michlib-l < [ mailto:michlib-l at mcls.org | michlib-l at mcls.org ] > wrote: 

Greetings, Library Friends! 

We have a board member who is proposing that all staff should wear library branded polos at the desk. We are reaching out to other Michigan libraries to see if any other libraries currently have a similar policy in place or have in the past. We do currently have a dress code which was approved by the board just a few years ago and seems to be serving us well at this time, so we are most interested in just gathering information from our fellow library friends regarding this proposal. 

Thanks and have a great day! 

Autumn Smith 

Assistant Director 

The Schultz-Holmes District Library 

407 South Lane Street 

Blissfield, MI 49228 

517-486-2858 

517-486-3565 (fax) 

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-- 

Abby Bond 

Director 

Eastpointe Memorial Library 

586-445-5096 

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