Green’s Dictionary of Slang

(orig. Aus.) one who has a desk job; also attrib.

1945		Atebrin Advocate: Mag. 2/4 Aus. Armoured Regiment 28 Apr. 3: He liked being a sailor. He didn’t like being a ‘shiny bum.’ [AND].
1945		Fore and Aft: 42 Aus. Landing Craft Co. A.I.F. 26 Feb. 3: The North must [...] give the ‘shiny-seats’ .. an idea of the work that is really being done [AND].
1954		(con. 1940s) E. Lambert Veterans 16: The shiny-arses have been round asking a million bloody questions.
1971		D. Ireland Unknown Industrial Prisoner 36: The little bosses protested as reasonably as they could to the office staff – the shiny arses.
1980		H. Lunn Behind Banana Curtain 191: ‘Don’t worry, I will take you fellas,’ the driver said. ‘All the other cabs are taking the calls for the shiny arses but I won’t be in it for the shinies.’.
1991		Sydney Morn. Herald 14 Mar. 51/1: An almost pathological need to ‘go bush’ [...] to shake off the shiny-bum office pants.
1993		B. Moore Lex. of Cadet Lang. 336: shiny bum a public servant, since his bum (seat of his trousers) is shiny from being rubbed on a seat all day.
1999		www.borisbooks.com.au 🌐 The Shiny Bum Singers perform the traditional work songs of the public service in traditional working dress.
2000		Age (Melbourne) Extra 8 Jan. 5/5: The Floriade festival is an attempt to overcome any perception that this capital city is full of ‘shiny arses’ in grey suits.
2002		Oz Words Nov. 🌐 The bodgie boy has long since gone where good bodgie boys go to (he probably wound up as a staid shiny bum and is now, as an old age pensioner, happily planting vegies).
2003		www.pull-up-a-sandbag.com 🌐 Shiny Arse – Sqn Clerks.