I just ran my new Black workman through 5 or 6 cycles of the washer, with Fab softener, I've got it hanging outside right now, the way they say to. After it's completely dry, I'll throw it into a dryer set on the fluff setting, with a dozen tennis ball to beat the hell out it.

Then it'll be soft enough to wear.

BTW, I do the tennis ball thing every time I wash a UK; hang-drying seems to make it stiff, so a little abuse is good for knocking that stiffness out of it.