A Washington city's dress code ordinance saying bikini baristas must cover their bodies at work has been ruled unconstitutional by a federal court.
FILE - A barista at a Grab-N-Go Bikini Hut espresso stand holds money as she waves to a customer on Feb. 2, 2010, just outside the city limits of Everett, Wash., in Snohomish County. Everett's dress code ordinance that says "bikini baristas" must cover their bodies at work has been ruled unconstitutional by a federal court.
FILE - A barista at a Grab-N-Go Bikini Hut espresso stand holds money as she waves to a customer on Feb. 2, 2010, just outside the city limits of Everett, Wash., in Snohomish County. Everett's dress code ordinance that says "bikini baristas" must cover their bodies at work has been ruled unconstitutional by a federal court.
EVERETT, Wash. — A Washington city’s dress code ordinance saying bikini baristas must cover their bodies at work has been ruled unconstitutional by a federal court. The decision in a partial summary judgment this week comes after a lengthy legal battle between bikini baristas and the city of Everett over the rights of workers to wear what they want, the Everett HeraldU.S. District Court in Seattle found Everett’s dress code ordinance violated the Equal Protection clauses of the U.S. and Washington state constitutions.
It is difficult to imagine, the court wrote, how the ordinance would be equally applied to men and women in practice because it prohibits clothing “typically worn by women rather than men,” including midriff and scoop-back shirts, as well as bikinis.Bikini baristas were “clearly” a target of the ordinance, the court also ruled, adding that the profession is comprised of a workforce that is almost entirely women.