Female staffers on The Howard Stern Show reportedly kept backup shoes nearby because of a workplace rule that targeted women. The unusual directive allegedly barred female employees from wearing sneakers, while male colleagues faced no similar restriction.
The rule reportedly remained relevant even after pandemic dress codes made casual officewear common.
Female Howard Stern Show staffers allegedly stash backup footwear at work
Multiple insiders told The U.S. Sun that women on Stern’s SiriusXM team kept non-sneaker shoes under their desks. One source said the rule applied regardless of the footwear men chose.
“There is this rule that it doesn’t matter what kind of footwear men wore, but the women are not allowed to wear sneakers at work,” the insider claimed.
Some women reportedly kept “non sneakers” nearby whenever executives planned to visit. The arrangement struck the insider as outdated after pandemic-era work culture made casual clothing common.
“Times have changed, but also maybe don’t have different rules for men and women. That’s insane,” the source said.
Stern had pushed strict appearance standards across his workplace. A 2013 clip known among fans as the Pelican Brief showed him criticizing staffers’ clothing and hygiene.
“Some people around here look like zombies from Walking Dead, we look like a college radio station, we look like we have homeless people working here,” Stern said.
The insider also claimed the show carried its dress-code expectations into Zoom meetings during the pandemic. Staffers allegedly avoided sweatshirts and hats, while Stern’s no-logo rule applied beyond on-camera employees.
The footwear complaint came amid other reported workplace restrictions. Sources previously claimed employees could not approach Stern at company parties, with one insider alleging warnings preceded those events.
The broader shakeup included 40 February layoffs and 16 July cuts. Those reductions arrived after Stern renewed his SiriusXM contract and prepared to cut his schedule to one live show weekly after his September summer break.
The reported sneaker rule added another curious chapter to a workplace already attracting attention.
TELL US – DO YOU THINK THE HOWARD STERN SHOW’S ALLEGED SNEAKER RULE FOR WOMEN WAS OUTDATED?
