The Conservative Cave
Current Events => General Discussion => Topic started by: franksolich on July 04, 2009, 08:25:36 AM
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The poll question does not refer to military or law-enforcement uniforms, or religious attire; strictly to uniforms civilian and temporal.
I'm midway through doing someone a favor, working at his truck stop over the 4th of July weekend, and last night (Friday night), I went there to work wearing a dark brown pinstriped three piece suit, including vest and tie.
It was a startlement to customers, who said I looked like a London banker, and were wondering why.
I told them I was protesting work uniforms.
I don't wear any uniform, just regular clothes, because even as a little lad, I thought work uniforms, to put it bluntly, sucked.
That was about the time real-estate agencies began enforcing dress-codes in their offices, coercing all employees to wear the same color of blazer, usually red. Some people look good in red, some people look lousy in red; some people look okay in blazers, some people look ridiculous in blazers.
Everybody and anybody looks really stupid in discount-store, convenience-store, dollar-store, truck-stop, &c., &c., &c. uniforms.
It's got to be humilating and degrading for such unfortunate people, as such uniforms appear to have been purposely designed to make them look like clowns.
Anyone who has ever seen a heavy woman working in a convenience store, having to wear a pink polyester-something, knows what I mean.
One suspects employee morale at any place would improve, if employees were allowed to wear their own regular semi-formal clothing, instead of having to walk around looking like a clown. Probably productivity would skyrocket, too.
The closest I ever came to having to wear a uniform was at Dollar General. When I first moved from Omaha up here to the Sandhills of Nebraska, I was a stranger, and besides had to support myself. I worked for Dollar General for several months, unloading trucks, until I learned the lay of the land, got to know some people, and then wandered off in different career directions.
Dollar General had this policy that employees had to (and perhaps still have to) wear tan pants and either a very dark blue or black polyester-double knit sort of shirt.
Tan pants, I had no problem; however, I had considerable difficulty with the idea of wearing one of those stupid shirts. I remedied the situation by getting regular standard usual cotton shirts in the same very dark blue color as that dictated by Dollar General.
This was never "good" enough to suit management, but as good employees were hard to find, I got away with it. Not once did I ever don one of those stupid official Dollar General polyester-double knit crudities.
The last time I worked at the truck stop as a favor--Memorial Day, so a regular employee there could have time with her family--there was a kid who came in, who works at Target in the "big city" (recently demoted from the 9th-largest city in Nebraska to the 10th-largest city).
He wondered why I was not wearing a uniform.
I told him why, using a few words here-and-there that made him blush.
Then he asked, "Well, without a uniform, how would customers know you're an employee?"
To which I replied, "Look, when you walked inside this door and merely looked at me, you immediately knew who was working here. No 'uniform,' no badge, no nothing, to distinguish me from anybody else, but still, you knew who was working here."
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I'm afraid the meaning of your poll question is a bit unclear, I'm not sure whether you are asking whether respondents have ever had to wear a uniform, or if they affirmatively like or dislike the very idea.
I personally have no problem with them at all, though, they fulfill several positive functions in addition to the disadvantages you list. Role establishment, maintenance of employee dress standards with no room for quibbling, brand promotion, things of that sort.
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I've had a career of wearing uniforms, and as a military musician, I never had the "privilege" of wearing a uniform that wasn't impeccable. No reflection on maintenance guys, but grease stains weren't an option. Neither were boots that were shined with a candy bar. I spent a lot of time and money and energy on uniforms. Enough is enough.
As an Army retiree working in a civilian establishment/environment, I'm appreciative of the freedom to wear the duds I want to wear.
My first gig after retirement required me to wear at least a sport coat and tie. I spent $2K getting outfitted with all that crap that I "needed" for my job. After 2+ years I went to another gig which required that I wear a shirt with a collar, pants or slacks (no jeans) and regular shoes (no "sport" types).
That's pretty much been the standard since that time, except now I'll wear jeans from time to time. (There is no set standard at my current job/location, except my own for me.)
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As a mechanic myself, I like the uniform and laundry service that goes with it. I am told that my uniforms are treated as hazardous wast.
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If I walk into the Valero convenience store and the lady behind the counter is wearing her 'ghetto' clothes, I would probably leave. Some people need uniforms because they cannot be trusted to dress properly
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If I walk into the Valero convenience store and the lady behind the counter is wearing her 'ghetto' clothes, I would probably leave. Some people need uniforms because they cannot be trusted to dress properly.
Well, I'm not saying there shouldn't be dress codes--of course there should be.
What I'm saying is that employees shouldn't have to wear attire that makes them look like clowns.
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Well, I'm not saying there shouldn't be dress codes--of course there should be.
What I'm saying is that employees shouldn't have to wear attire that makes them look like clowns.
Except for the circus I'd agree
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If I walk into the Valero convenience store and the lady behind the counter is wearing her 'ghetto' clothes, I would probably leave. Some people need uniforms because they cannot be trusted to dress properly
Additional to that, In many situations the uniform is also a safety issue- ensuring that the employee is visible, or where working in a role that involves hazardous materials where the uniform needs to be cleaned without contaminating other clothing. Example being in the mining sector.
Other situations it makes the staff member immediately identifiable to the client and assists to convey authority in their role thereby helping boost client confidence.
I actually liked wearing a uniform because it was just easier.
The decision to enact dress codes from setting a minimum standard to a complete uniform should be at the discretion of the employer.
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I find uniforms to be a hassle. My uniform-wearing experience has been limited to restaurants and kitchens, but those chef jackets are expensive... $30 a pop if you have to pay for the large or XL size and you're working six days a week like many busy places. Apart from the cost, managing a separate load of laundry was a hassle. I would hope I have advanced enough in my professional life to no longer be employed by places that require a uniform (as opposed to a dress code). I still do all my laundry, but I have dress shirts that need to be pressed because they tend to wrinkle. Linen shirts are nice, but they don't handle drying well. Its not nearly as big of a problem if you use the right wash setting -- I tend to use permanent press for everything.
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If work mandated that I was to wear Nomex flame-retardant shirts at all times while working and provided them? No problem.
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My job provides uniforms to those who want them as part of our contract, but they are not required . Our only requirements are steel toed safety shoes and safety glasses.
In the winter I wear a long sleeve shirt over a T-shirt and blue jeans, in summer it's jeans and a T-shirt. I can't wear the uniforms they provide because of an allergy to the cleaning compounds the uniform company provides.
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I work in healthcare, but not as a care-giver, so am not only not required to wear scrubs, I'm told to wear them ONLY when in a sterile area. My boss prefers us to look like professionals, so we wear slacks and dress shirts (button down or polo...always with a collar for the name tag.)
At my last place of employment, we chose to go on a uniform program. We weren't regulated to one uniform, however...I chose 2 colors of shirts and 2 colors of slacks, but some of my coworkers chose a different outfit for every day. I actually liked the uniform service because it did away with one load of laundry and ALL the ironing every week! :-) If given the opportunity to join a flexible service again, I will.
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If work mandated that I was to wear Nomex flame-retardant shirts at all times while working and provided them? No problem.
When I was doing work for BP North America out in Texas, that's exactly what the company required, and what they provided, no less. Nomex button-up long sleeve shirt, and Nomex blue jeans. Every year they provided a voucher for a new pair of steel-toed boots and prescription safety glasses (as required).
After the Texas City fire, you talk about a real "come to Jesus" moment within a corporate structure...
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When I was doing work for BP North America out in Texas, that's exactly what the company required, and what they provided, no less. Nomex button-up long sleeve shirt, and Nomex blue jeans.
After the Texas City fire, you talk about a real "come to Jesus" moment within a corporate structure...
In industrial settings; seeing the aftermath of an arc flash, explosion, or fire when an individual isn't wearing a suitable level of fire resistant garments... it's just not a pretty picture. :(
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Yup.
I'm enough of a believer in 'em that I have a few sets I purchased on my own, for all of the freelance oil and gas work I used to do, before Obama made it his mission in life to bankrupt the fossil fuels companies.
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I've done many different jobs some calling for shorts, t-shirt and sneakers to my current job wearing a suit 5 days a week. You wear what the boss wants you to wear.
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In industrial settings; seeing the aftermath of an arc flash, explosion, or fire when an individual isn't wearing a suitable level of fire resistant garments... it's just not a pretty picture. :(
sometimes we should just go through life wearing a Faraday Burkha
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I work in healthcare, but not as a care-giver, so am not only not required to wear scrubs, I'm told to wear them ONLY when in a sterile area. My boss prefers us to look like professionals, so we wear slacks and dress shirts (button down or polo...always with a collar for the name tag.)
At my last place of employment, we chose to go on a uniform program. We weren't regulated to one uniform, however...I chose 2 colors of shirts and 2 colors of slacks, but some of my coworkers chose a different outfit for every day. I actually liked the uniform service because it did away with one load of laundry and ALL the ironing every week! :-) If given the opportunity to join a flexible service again, I will.
A couple car dealerships in which I was a manager, I had the benefit of a uniform service. These were nice dressy type clothes, but I did not have to wash them.
It did not take long to brush up against something dirty so it was nice not having to worry about it.
I have a professional job in a retail enviroment. I get away with tennis shoes, and my feet are alot happier. I spend 8 hours on my feet, I never sit down while on the clock...my feet love comfortable shoes. I gave up trying to find comfortable casual shoes, I would spend hundreds of dollars and they would end up hurting my feet.
(most customers can't see my feet due to the set up)
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We are supposed to wear steel toed safety shoes at all times, but they can be a real pain. I keep a pair of tennis shoes in my tool box for the times I have to work OT. Plus , on Saturday and Sunday there are only 3 of us in the shop, so I sometimes skip the safety shoes completely.
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It's Blues monday for me. Only uniform I don't really like to wear. To much damn work.
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Mine varies greatly. Just a regular day, when the only pounding I'm doing is on a keyboard I wear slacks and a button up, with a tie in reserve. On days when I know a customer meeting is scheduled, button up shirt dress slacks and a tie, if I'm back fixing the engineer's mistakes it's jeans safety gear and a utility belt. Since I'm playing in the sand box, I handle the details for my company in the yard, safety gear, jeans, and a T-shirt with an outlandish saying on it, usually.