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Gender equality concerning profession, position and pay has prompted countless studies and has led to even more questions.

While the impassioned debates have not extended to the sartorial battle of the sexes, most people would agree that there are inconsistencies at work.

Are men and women on a level playing field when it comes to their office attire?

Consider the grumblings:

"Who's kidding who?" the fictionalized boys' camp cries out.

"Women have far more options and aren't tied to wearing stuffy suits and ties. They can come to work with bare legs and no one will complain."

Meanwhile, female power players and administrative assistants alike are quick to object.

"You guys don't realize how lucky you are. Those suits keep you warm while we sit at our desks freezing, and you don't waste nearly as much time thinking about whether things match."

Sound familiar? In fact, today's column materialized from a recent online discussion that began when a reader, David Guy from Toronto, asked whether men "have the short end of the deal when it comes to summer attire at the office."

The final question, submitted by Montrealer Frederic Latour, carried a similar tone: "Although a dress code exists for both men and women, my experience has shown that it is usually enforced more rigidly for men than women," he wrote. "Maybe it is just my imagination, or just that [managers] find it easier to enforce" a dress code for men.

Note that both comments came from men, although what remains unclear is whether they are expressing envy or resentment.

It's the ultimate glass half-empty or half-full scenario, according to Sarah Collins. "Men have less choice, which makes it much simpler to get dressed in the morning," the Toronto-based image consultant says. "Women have far too much choice, so it becomes far more confusing."

As far as adhering to dress codes, men's image consultant Damon Allan thinks there's a double standard at play. "To be perfectly honest, the rules are a bit more lax when it comes to women," he says from Hamilton, where his company, Alexander Steel Image Consulting, is based. Mr. Allan admits that the rules for women are not as finite, and therefore more prone to bending.

Summer exacerbates this discrepancy; some men don't invest in summer-weight clothing, so they come to the office in heavy fabrics, while women show up wearing light dresses and open-toe shoes. But when the office is over-air-conditioned, guess who complains first?

This is why Ms. Collins suggests that women dress for the indoors. "That's where you spend the majority of your day," she says. "When you're outside, you can peel off the layers."

Vancouver image consultant Lilly Page takes a different approach; she advises dressing for summer and bringing a sweater or a scarf. "There's inappropriateness in women's dress at the office and that [applies] to winter, too. I think women are just using summer as an excuse to wear things that are less appropriate," she says.

For what it's worth, Cornell University professor Alan Hedge has spent years studying temperature at the workplace. One of his conclusions is that exposed ankles and necks contribute to women feeling colder. Body hair is another factor.

"It's the same concept as a fur coat," he is quoted as saying in the Denver Post. "If women didn't shave their legs, then they might be a little better off."

Ms. Collins still recommends that men avoid wearing December clothes in August. Trading a suit and dress shirt for a sport jacket, a solid colour polo T-shirt and a pair of polished khakis (translation: not the cottage pair) makes a big difference in feeling cooler.

Going sockless may not be universally sanctioned, but it's as close to a sandal as a man is going to get (those who can't go sockless should try colours such as purple or a lighter stripe; psychologically, they feel more summery). And speaking of sandals, they really have no place in a traditionally formal office, even on women.

Women are increasingly choosing walking (knee length) shorts as an alternative to pants. With the exception of creative office environments and fashion forward employees who have mastered the shorts-with-blazer look, this is a case where men don't have that option.

"It opens up a whole can of worms," says Ms. Page, referring to men and shorts. "I'm not against casual dressing, but if you want to be successful, you have to look successful." The problem, she says, is most men have difficulty with too many options.

Mr. Allan says that men face a learning curve when it comes to options. And the end goal should never be comfort. "If you go to work thinking about comfort all the time, then maybe you're in the wrong profession," he says. "A man may think he'll be comfortable but he may feel relaxed to the point of not being productive."

Which is another way of saying that the best office outfits are the ones that don't distract you or others from getting the job done. Men and women create enough distractions for each other at work, for better or for worse.