thumb|right|250px|Uniform of Porfirio Díaz, about 1900
A
uniform is a set of standard
clothing worn by members of an organization while participating in that
organization's activity. Modern uniforms are worn by
armed forces and
paramilitary organisations such as
police, emergency services,
security guards, in some workplaces and
schools and by inmates in
prisons. In some countries, some other officials also wear uniforms in their duties; such is the case of the
Commissioned Corps of the
United States Public Health Service or the
French prefects. For some public groups, such as police, it is illegal for non members to wear the uniform. Other uniforms are
trade dressed (such as the brown uniforms of
UPS).
Service and work uniforms
Workers sometimes wear uniforms or
corporate clothing of one nature or another, including but not limited to
shop workers,
bank and
post office workers,
airline employees and holiday operators, and
bar,
restaurant and
hotel employees. The use of uniforms by these organizations is often an effort in
branding and developing a standard
corporate image but also has important effects on the employees required to wear the uniform. The first
service uniform registered with the
United States Patent and Trademark Office was the
Playboy Bunny outfit (U.S. trademark number 762,884). However the term 'uniform' is misleading because employees are not always fully uniform in appearance and may not always wear attire provided by the organization, while still representing the organization in their attire. Academic work on organizational dress by Rafaeli & Pratt (1993) referred to uniformity (homogeneity) of dress as one dimension, and conspicuousness as a second. Employees all wearing black, for example, may appear conspicuous and thus represent the organization even though their attire is uniform only in the color of their appearance not in its features. Pratt & Rafaeli, (1997)described struggles between employees and management about organizational dress as struggles about deeper meanings and identities that dress represents. And Pratt & Rafaeli (2001) described dress as one of the larger set of
symbols and artifacts in organizations which coalesce into a communication grammar.
- Rafaeli, A. & Pratt, M. J. 1993. Tailored meaning: On the meaning and impact of organizational dress. Academy of Management Review, 18(1): 32-55.
- Pratt, M. & Rafaeli, A. 1997. Organizational dress as a symbol of multilayered social identities. Academy of Management Journal, 40(4): 862-898.
- Pratt, M. G. & Rafaeli, A. 2001. Symbols as a language of organizational relationships. Research in Organizational Behavior, 23: 93-13
Schools
Across the world uniforms are worn in many schools. School uniforms vary from a standard issue T-shirt to rigorous requirements for many items of formal wear at private schools.
Countries with school uniforms mandated include
Japan,
India,
Australia,
Hong Kong and the
United Kingdom, as well as many other places. In some countries uniform types vary from school to school, but in the UK many pupils between 11 and 16 of age wear a formal jacket,
tie and
trousers for boys and
blouse,
tie and
trousers or
skirt or
culottes for girls. The ties will usually be in a set pattern for the school & jackets will usually carry a patch on the breast pocket with the school's
coat of arms and
motto or
emblem and name. Jackets are being replaced in many schools by sweatshirts bearing the school badge. Children in many UK state primary schools will have a uniform jumper and or polo shirt with the school name and logo.
Sports
Most, if not all,
professional sports teams also wear uniforms, made in the team's distinctive colors, often in different variations for "home" and "away" games. In the
United Kingdom, especially in
soccer, the terms "kit" or "strip" (as in '
football kit') are more common.
Security and armed forces
In the case of uniforms worn by military personnel or civilian officials, there are generally several kinds of uniforms:
- dress uniform: worn at ceremonies, official receptions, and other special occasions; medals are typically worn.
- everyday work uniform, where earned medals are typically replaced by ribbon bars;
Prison
Domestic workers
Domestic workers are often required by their
employers to wear a uniform.
Uniform hygiene
In some countries or regions such as the
UK,
Australia or
Hong Kong, the laundry expenses of working- uniform or
clothing can be partially deducted or rebated from the personal
income tax, if the organization for which the person works does not have a laundry department or an outsourced
commercial laundry.
Scouting
The Scout uniform is a specific characteristic of the
Scouting movement, in the words of
Baden-Powell at the 1938 World Jamboree, "it covers the differences of country and race and make all feel that they are members one with another of one World Brotherhood". The original uniform, which has created a familiar image in the public eye, consisted of a khaki button-up
shirt, shorts and a broad-brimmed
campaign hat. Baden-Powell himself wore shorts as being dressed like the youth contributed to reducing distances between the adult and the young person. Nowadays, uniforms are frequently blue, orange, red or green, and shorts are replaced by long pants in areas where the culture calls for modesty, and in winter weather.
See also
