The transition from one year to the next is a time when people and businesses make plans for the future. They look at what worked and what didn’t and think about what changes they need to make. In many cases, this involves having some kind of refresh. As a part of this, you might want to refresh your work uniform.
With that in mind, Ross Crayton, Managing Director of Core Workwear, specialists in printed and embroidered workwear, shares his insight into freshening up your uniform in the New Year.
Why should you refresh your work uniform?
There are two clear signs that you should refresh your uniform. The first is if staff are clearly unhappy with it. There is generally a reason for this. You should identify and address it. The second is if you independently identify that your uniform is no longer fit for its intended purposes. This can be seen in various ways. Here are five of the main ones.
Clothes are worn out
Clothes don’t last forever, and work uniforms tend to have particularly short lifespans. By their nature, they are worn regularly. They are also often worn for activities that are at least moderately strenuous. Both of these facts mean that work uniforms tend to need to be washed regularly. This further shortens their lifespan.
There are several reasons why having staff wearing worn-out uniforms is bad for your business. Two stand out. Firstly, it gives a poor impression of your business. Secondly, it can lead to safety issues.
Although uniforms are different from PPE, many uniforms do play some kind of safety function. For example, peaked caps may protect staff from the weather. In some environments, worn uniforms could present an active safety hazard. For example, they might be more prone to snagging on machinery/equipment.
Your branding is no longer clearly visible
Even if your work uniform itself is still in reasonable condition, the branding on it might not be. As previously mentioned, regular washing shortens the lifespan of clothing. The damage generally starts with more vulnerable elements such as embroidery and/or printing. This is exactly how most companies add their branding.
Clothing no longer meets current standards
Many work uniforms serve a technical purpose. This is often to do with protection. In these situations, there is often at least a basic, expected standard. This may be explicitly set by regulators. More commonly it is implicitly set by a combination of health and safety laws and industry practices.
Regardless of how a standard is set, it is likely to be continuously raised. These raises may seem minor. In fact, they often are. Even so, they can make a significant difference to how well a uniform performs. This in turn can make a significant difference to how well your team performs.
It can also put you on a surer footing with regards to potential health and safety claims. If any are raised against you, you will be able to demonstrate that you provided your staff with the highest level of protection available at the time.
Clothing can also fall below standards if the nature of a role changes over time. A uniform which was perfect before may not be appropriate for the new activities. For example, if a business switches from operating solely on one site to having mobile operations, some uniforms at least may need to be updated to reflect this.
Clothing is dated
Work uniforms are unlikely to follow the seasonal fashion trends. They do, however, often benefit from being updated from time to time to reflect changing expectations. For example, traditionally, uniforms tended to be very formal. Over recent years, however, many businesses have moved their uniforms to the smarter end of smart-casual.
Another key trend in work uniforms is minimising the differences between male and female uniforms. This correlates with modern societal expectations. As a bonus, it can help to keep employers on the right side of the Equality Act 2010.
Sustainability is also a growing concern. It used to be fairly common for work uniforms to be made of synthetic fabrics. This was because they were both low-cost and low-maintenance. Synthetic fabrics are still sometimes used for technical purposes. Overall, however, there has been a significant move to natural ones.
Your branding has changed
The whole point of a uniform is to display your company’s branding. If this changes then it’s definitely time to update your uniform.
What a new work uniform should achieve
Work uniforms generally serve a practical purpose and a marketing purpose. The purposes should be prioritised in that order. This means that your primary goal should be to make your staff happier. Part of this could mean keeping them safer. Your secondary goal should be to boost your marketing and make your business more engaging.
With that in mind, here are the key points you should consider when refreshing your uniform.
What does your team want?
If you’re going to invest in new work uniforms, you want (and need) your staff to be happy in them. Survey them for feedback and get as much detail as you can.
Keep in mind that an individual’s experience of wearing a uniform is likely to be influenced by the way it fits them personally. This may mean that you need to look at offering different options to suit people of different shapes and sizes. For example, you may want to have a petit option and an option for people with longer legs.
What practical purposes does the uniform need to fulfil?
In other words, what exactly are staff going to be doing in it, where and when? The answers to these questions are almost certainly going to vary by job role. They may also vary depending on whether a worker is permanent or seasonal.
What branding purposes does the uniform need to fulfil?
Reviewing staff uniforms is a good time to review your branding in general. Firstly, you want to make sure that it still reflects your business. Secondly, you need to ensure that it’s still compliant with both public expectations and relevant laws.
For example, there is a strong trend towards simplifying branding to make it easier for people to interpret. This helps to avoid unintended discrimination. It can also make branding stand out more in a fast-paced, modern world.
