Advertisements for Polo Ralph Laurenshow a world populated by beautiful trust-fund families on theirleafy estates. But how far should a company go to propel that imageinto the public consciousness? A few current and former employees sayPolo crossed the line. Two onetime sales associates joined aclass-action lawsuit this week alleging that image was, in part,crafted illegally, by forcing salespeople to spend thousands ofdollars a year on the company's latest outfits to project a'lifestyle image.? The hired help, in other words, struggled tokeep the shirt on their backs, even with the in-house 65% discount.Accusations against the posh clothing company ring true for manysalespeople, but few have taken their case to court, said Dean Friar,spokesman for California's Department of Industrial Relations,Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. The law says employers whorequire workers to wear uniforms must provide that wardrobe at nocost. ?But we see, instead, discounts given out,? Friar said.?That's very common.? Industry experts, includingrepresentatives of the National Retail Federation, the largest retailtrade organization in the world, have never heard of a lawsuitsimilar to the one filed against Polo. They say salespeople aretraditionally expected to look presentable and sport some of thedesigner's product, but no one reached by The Times had heard of anemployer forcing its staff to invest heavily in wardrobe. ?Thisstrikes me as a unique lawsuit,? said Peter Arnold, executivedirector of the Council of Fashion Designers of America. Thecomplaint against Polo was initially filed in federal court lastmonth in San Francisco by Toni Young, a 31-year-old sales associate.Attorneys for Polo have until Nov. 4 to respond to the complaint.When contacted for this story, Polo spokeswoman Ellen Maguire saidthat the company does not comment on pending litigation. Plaintiffattorney Patrick R. Kitchin says Young, who earned $22,000 last year,has receipts that show she was required to spend more than $6,000 ayear on Polo purchases since she began working at the store in 1997.?It's a ton of money,? he said by phone from his office nearthe Polo store where Young still works. Young's lawsuit alsoalleges that Polo managers conducted ?strip searches to ensure thatall of their clothing is from the defendants? product lines.??They would ask Ms. Young to take off her sweaters ? she had ashirt on underneath ? or take off her shoes, so they could checkthe labels,? Kitchin said. ?In late August, all employees in theSan Francisco store were told they needed five new outfits from thefall collection. They had to come in wearing the outfits so theycould be photographed and those photographs could be kept in a filesent on to headquarters in New York.? Kitchin has posted the Web toattract additional plaintiffs. One of the newest plaintiffs is26-year-old Janika Goff, who worked at the same store as Young, whereboth Ralph Lauren Designer Clothes and Polo clothes are sold. Overfive years, she sold shoes and clothes full time and made about$24,000 a year. Each season, she was entitled to an 80% discount offtwo pairs of shoes and a 65% discount off everything else, includingthe Polo clothes she was expected to wear every day. ?They wantedyou to be in current season and wanted the shoes to look nice and notscuffed, but I was running up and down stairs, doing stock worksometimes, so I would buy comfortable shoes,? said Goff, who nowworks at a bank in San Diego. Goff estimates that after five years atPolo, she had accumulated 65 pairs of shoes, most of which sheconsiders in great condition but that were too scuffed for store?smanagement to consider acceptable. When Goff showed up in sandals oneday, a manager made her choose a pair of loafers to wear. ?Theprice of $50 was deducted from my paycheck,? Goff said. For Young,the store's expectations were clearly out of line with what sheknew about retail. She had previously worked at the mid-rangeclothing chain Bebe while she worked toward a court stenographer?sdegree. ?I did have to buy Bebe clothes, but they were a lot morelax about how current you had to be,? she said. ?You couldactually go to a secondhand store and buy a Bebe outfit for work andnot be questioned.? Another former employee who confirmed he hasjoined Young's class-action lawsuit is Troy Greene, a former salesassociate for eight years at Polo on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills.Greene was earning $87,000 by the time he resigned last month over adispute about new payment structures. He was immediately hired byPrada, also on Rodeo Drive, which provides its employees withuniforms ? at no charge ? that must be returned at the end ofeach season. ?We get two pairs of trousers, four dress shirts, fourknit tops, two pairs of shoes and a belt. All paid for,? saidGreene, 40. ?Gucci does the same thing.? According to Young, Polomanagement received commissions on the ?sales? they made to theirstaffs. Young, who is black, also filed a racial discrimination suitagainst Polo in San Francisco Superior Court last month. Kitchin saysthat in addition to being subject to cruel racial remarks bysuperiors, Young has not been promoted during her five-year career atthe store, despite glowing reviews from managers. ?She was told herhair was too nappy, and she needed to straighten her hair,? Kitchinsaid. ?Managers call out to her with an exaggerated AfricanAmerican urban accent. They call her ?Ms. Thang.? ? This is notthe first tussle Polo has had with its staff. In February, the EqualEmployment Opportunity Commission said Polo Ralph Lauren ClothingCorp. denied minorities the same pay and opportunities as whites evenas it promoted a ?blond hair and blue eyes? image. Thecommission's conclusion was related to another lawsuit pending infederal court by two former Polo employees.