Deliver some comfort to our faithful carriers
Everett, Wash.
Published: Monday, August 11, 2008
Rats. We missed Official Kilt Day, which was Friday. (A fine tradition going back at least a few years…) But we bet postal carrier Dean Peterson didn't miss Kilt Day. He recently gained attention by trying to persuade the U.S. Postal Service to add kilts as a uniform option for men.
The Lacey letter carrier's idea was unfortunately and uncomprehendingly defeated at the July convention of the 220,000-member National Letter Carriers' Association.
The unofficial U.S. Postal Service motto states that, "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds."
Would it really be that awkward to add "tight pants" to that list?
Earlier this year, letter carrier unions in Washington and Oregon passed resolutions endorsing kilts, which Peterson and other enthusiasts refer to as "unbifurcated garments." Peterson, a big and tall man, says kilts are the only comfortable clothing he can wear on his appointed rounds, and after hours as well. Actually, he goes into more detail than that, but we really, really don't need to know why bifurcated garments cause him discomfort. We champion his cause just the same.
Female carriers can choose to wear a uniform skirt, shorts or pants. Male mail carriers should have the same choice. The Letter Carriers Association said there wasn't enough demand for kilts to approve the request. But Peterson correctly points out that there are approved uniform items that few carriers actually wear, such as a cardigan sweater, vest and pith helmet.
Besides skirts, pants and shorts, female carriers can also choose to wear official USPS "culottes," which is what they were called in the 1970s. Today they are known as skorts -- they look like a skirt but have bifurcated shorts underneath. (The genders often have different ideas about what constitutes "freedom.")
With so much choice for women, it's only fair that men who wish to wear kilts be allowed to do so.
For those few Americans who still engage in physical labor, comfortable work clothing is paramount. And physical labor is still required by letter carriers, except for certain suburban routes that don't require actually exiting the postal vehicle. So, again, if some men wish to wear Postal Service kilts, with or without a dashing pith helmet, the association should let them. It's not like they're clamoring to wear bikinis or something. But maybe they'll get better tips at Christmas, just the same. Or not.
Bookmarks