Does the Team think?

[A G Wood]

I'm always amazed that few in fitting shops wore boots. Shoes were much more common, even in steam engine building shops. I recall seeing the same in my teens in the 1960s on building sites where I used to get summer holiday work as a labourer, shoes or wellingtons(with the tops turned down) were the standard wear, very few wore boots.
I think it depended on the company Duncan. At this apprentice school we were told we must wear steel toecapped boots. We were even told what overalls to buy, and from which shop.

Same on building sites here Duncan, except Red Band brand gumboots ilo Wellies. When I transferred to demolition the second thing I bought was a pair of proper steel cap boots (first purchase was the obligatory denim jacket) as I considered un-armoured toes would have little chance of survival on that job.
Likewise Andrew34, if you showed up at Tech for a block course without clean overalls and safety footwear, you'd  be marked absent and  sent away to get them. And the boss would get a heads up.
If you showed up for night school without the textbooks, you'd be marked absent and sent away to get them. And the boss would get a heads up.
Dress code was less strict for night school though, apart from  "T- shirts, if worn, must not display offensive words or images" street clothes were fine.