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Work Shirts
I’m thinking of going this route and providing our crew with collared work shirts with our logo on them. I figured before I snooped around, I’d check on here to see what many are using. We wear vests, so I don’t want any bright yellow or orange T-shirts. Our guys where collared button down shirts either long or short sleeve usually with one or two pockets on them. I’d prefer two pockets, and with us working in Sunny South Florida (i.e. hot as hell 9 months out of the year) they need to be pretty lightweight cotton I would think. I coach football on the side and the “wicking” Under Armor style shirts or Columbia fishing shirts are too hot for me. I’d rather have some lightweight cotton ones. What brands are you guys using that order these in mass quantities for your crews? The Duluth shirts that have the comical advertisements have my attention, but I’ve never worn any, so I have no opinion on them. Most of my field shirts are the Wrangler Safari ones, and they do pretty well. Anyhow, just looking for some insight, thanks all!
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46 Replies
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I really like Duluth work wear. At the moment, I’m wearing their socks, pants and shirt!
They are well designed, well made & rugged, and they look good.
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Gromaticus, post: 350191, member: 597 wrote: I really like Duluth work wear. At the moment, I’m wearing their socks, pants and shirt!
They are well designed, well made & rugged, and they look good.
That’s good to know b/c I was looking into their stuff as my first choice. Thanks for the response.
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This likely won’t work for your situation, but what I do is look for Lands’ End closeouts on long-sleeve oxford cloth dress shirts with button-down collars. I can usually get them for $15 or less. I buy one, and if it checks out for fit I’ll order another half-dozen or so I have enough to last a week in the field.
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I was working for a firm that went with a uniform company that would provide x amount of shirts and pants with logo on the shirts and had seasonal short and long sleeves along with coveralls.
They looked professional and it was not hard to notice them.
Problem was that that particular employer took the costs from their employee’s weekly checks for the cost of the contract and the material was like 80% polysomthing and the uniforms were dark blue.
In NETexas that is the last thing that is going to be comfortable to wear.
I never showed up for a fitting and never wore them, nada, time to go SOLO dude. -
I do hope you are not going to make the shirts compulsary wear.
While I appreciate the need to look respectable & tidy, I’m very very picky about the functionality of the clothing I wear.
Being forced into sub-optimal clothing just because it carries a company logo is not what I want from an employer.
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20-something years ago, when I was the chief of parties at a company in WA. We received a catalog from some uniform company and without checking with the boss, a few of us in the office decided it might be fun to see what kind of reactions we could get out of the field crews with this.:whistle:
We found the most uncomfortable, dorkiest looking offering in the catalog. It was something made of 100% polyester, complete with baseball style hat, the whole thing looked something like a UPS uniform, but less comfortable.
Crew #2 came in first, and we got the expected from them. At the end of the daily debrief, it went something like this:
Me: OK guys, you may not like this, but the central office decided that our surveyors need to start projecting a more professional image in the field, so Jim (our boss) asked me to get your sizes so we can order uniforms for all the field crews.
Crew: “No way!”; “Are you f***ing kidding me?”
Me: I know. This sucks. I’d hate to have to wear this stuff, especially that polyester crap that doesn’t breathe and gets scratchy. Jim told them it was a bad idea too, but they didn’t seem to be interested in his opinion, so I’m pretty sure they won’t be interested in yours or mine.
That was followed by a few more grumbled complaints, and expletive laced opinions on the mental capabilities and family lineage of whoever had come up with this idea. But the dutifully wrote down their sizes and then went back to the work of putting equipment on chargers, and filling out cut sheets or the party chief daily report.
Just about that time, Crew #1 shows up. Chief #2 had dubbed these guys The Stinklesons at some point in the past. Chainman #1, who everyone knew as Booger (you can speculate how he got that name and likely wouldn’t be wrong), would bathe once or twice a month, or when the boss instructed him to shower and put on (relatively) clean clothes before showing up for work the next day. Chief #1 was slightly better, probably bathing once or twice a week and rarely working up as much of a sweat as Booger at work. If you ever had to work with Booger, or work out of their truck for a day, it was an olfactory endurance test. If anyone in management had actually mandated any kind of a dress code to improve the company’s image in the field, these guys would be all the reason they would have needed.
I go through the same opening spiel with these guys and for a solid 30 seconds, get little more than blank stares form both of them. It was really difficult to keep a straight face through that and finally had to just tell them to write down their sizes and then turn back to my computer before I cracked up. That must have broke Chief #1 out of his initial shock because he blew up.
Chief #1: “Who the f*** came up with this s**t!!!”; “Is Jim going along with this bulls**t!?!”; “Where the f*** is Jim?!?!”
Me: “Top management.”; “Jim tried to say no but they gave him no choice.”; “Jim’s gone to a meeting and won’t be back for a while.” (when the cat’s away…)
Chief #1: Jim! Jim!!! Ji-i-im!!! Where the f*** is he? when the f*** will he be back?!
Booger (finally recovering somewhat from his shocked stupor): No way. I won’t do it! They can’t make me!! I’ll quit! I’ll get another job. That’s it, I’m quitting!!
By now, the engineers and drafting people at the other end of the office were beginning to drift over while remaining at a safe distance trying to figure out what all the fuss was about and the receptionist was beginning to look mildly afraid of what might be happening.
Chief #1 was stomping about, waving a fieldbook or something around, hollering at the top of his voice “JIM!!! Where the he!! is Jim!?! When’s he getting back!?!”, and Booger was skulking around putting away equipment and hooking up batteries muttering about finding a job where he’s appreciated.
The other two survey office guys and the engineering CAD tech are now openly roaring with laughter, and between tears of laughter, I realized that Jim was going to return from his meeting any moment and if I didn’t get these guys settled down, It would be the difference between being able to share a laugh with the boss when I told him the story later and getting a good dressing down for having caused a situation where he gets cornered by a raving chief and a stammering I-man both threatening to quit for some reason he can’t begin to fathom.
Crew #2, each quite a bit quicker on the uptake than either of the Stinklesons, had pretty well figured out by then that we had just been yanking their chains, but it took a couple of minutes to get Chief #1 calmed down enough to hear the confession that it had all been a joke. It took him a few more minutes to calm down and let that sink in, but eventually was able to laugh about it. But poor Booger… we had underestimated the potential for psychological scarring that might occur. Even after several minutes of explaining to him that it had been a joke, and reassuring him that he would not be required to wear a company uniform, he was still shuffling around saying “You can’t make me do it. I won’t wear a uniform. I’ll quit first!”
Poor guy was still stammering about it the next morning. Jim had arrived the previous afternoon some time after the crew left for the day and he did get a good laugh out of it. Booger finally seemed to be willing to accept the idea that he didn’t need to look for another job only after Jim assured him repeatedly that next morning that there would be no uniforms.
Moral of the story? If you’re going to get company shirts, make them something that the field guys would find useful, go with the best quality you can get, and don’t make them mandatory.
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The Duluth Men’s Everyday F.O.M. Twill Short Sleeve Shirt looks reasonable for Florida climate. I might get that one myself.
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I just ordered a bright green shirt that said “Land Surveyor” across the shoulders, and had a shotgun blast facsimile on it!
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That Duluth shirt looks pretty good except that I find that if my shirt has pockets without a flap on top, those pockets tend to gather all kinds of vegetation debris if I have to do any stomping through the brush. But they’ve got several other shirts that look like they’d be great work shirts and keep the bits o’ brush out of my pockets.
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eapls2708, post: 350338, member: 589 wrote: That Duluth shirt looks pretty good except that I find that if my shirt has pockets without a flap on top, those pockets tend to gather all kinds of vegetation debris if I have to do any stomping through the brush. But they’ve got several other shirts that look like they’d be great work shirts and keep the bits o’ brush out of my pockets.
The fire hose work pants (the ones with the stupid TV commercial) and possibly some of their shirts have flapped pockets, but they are cut narrower than the pocket so they can be worn either with the flap on the outside to keep junk out, or with the flap on the inside to allow unrestricted access. Most shirt pockets also have dividers and interior pockets to hold cell phones, pencils, etc.
It’s odd to be talking about pockets (!), but they are one of my favorite features of Duluth and work well for me in the field.
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I’m with the “uniform” program. Just a better look all the way around.
I have been wearing long sleeved Columbia PFG “Bonehead” shirts for a decade now. They have pockets all over the place, they’re vented, and wear like iron. They are cotton/poly and handle the North Carolina hot/humid summers just fine. You’ll sweat through them which is an important cooling feature (evaporation), but they dry quickly. I buy batches of 5 and get 4 years or so out of them. Wash and hang to dry. I have even taken to wearing the sleeves down in the summer and it seems to feel cooler to me.
I pair the shirts with 5.11 Tactical pants. Tough, looks good, lasts. I often get comments that I “look like a surveyor” when I show up on the job. Feels kinda nice.
A Tilley airflow tops off the package. The Tilley is expensive, and I’m on my 3rd one in 15 years. But, they replace them FREE for lifetime so you only buy ONE, for LIFE. You pay half to replace a lost one. If I had crews, I might consider the Tilley a “merit badge” of sorts. You earn it.I like a lot of Duluth Trading products, but I found that the shirts were a bit like wearing a plastic bag and the F.O.M. “feature” was just a pleat at the back of the shoulders with an elastic band across the back to keep the pleats closed when they weren’t flexed. Felt like wearing a bra without cups, yuck.
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I’m just the opposite with the Columbia shirts. They feel like wearing a garbage bag to me. I want 100% cotton. I agree, on the uniforms should be comfortable and useful, I’m not going to force my guys to wear something I wouldn’t wear, and I’m picky as hell when it comes to my field clothing.
I don’t know, but I don’t think of me wearing anything “light” colored for a pant is going to do good. I’ve had jeans so messed up at the end of the day from working that the wife has to wash them 2 or 3 times to get them to look like jeans again. I can’t imagine what that light colored pant would look like.
I dig the hat though…
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I worked for an outfit in Hot Springs, Arkansas that provided us with the Columbia fishing shirts with the logo on them, plus t-shirts, hooded sweatshirts, and hats, all with the logo on them. Not only did I wear them proudly then, I still wear them now on some days here in Alabama.
I really like the Columbia shirts for cool, but then I’m not in south Florida either. I love the Duluth fire hose pants and am wearing them now, but I haven’t tried their shirts yet.
I applaud your efforts at making your guys, your company, and all surveyors look more professional. If we are going to be professionals, it helps to look the part, IMHO. My two cents. -
Timberwolf, post: 350391, member: 10599 wrote: I worked for an outfit in Hot Springs, Arkansas that provided us with the Columbia fishing shirts with the logo on them, plus t-shirts, hooded sweatshirts, and hats, all with the logo on them. Not only did I wear them proudly then, I still wear them now on some days here in Alabama.
I really like the Columbia shirts for cool, but then I’m not in south Florida either. I love the Duluth fire hose pants and am wearing them now, but I haven’t tried their shirts yet.
I applaud your efforts at making your guys, your company, and all surveyors look more professional. If we are going to be professionals, it helps to look the part, IMHO. My two cents.I agree. I passed by 2 the other day that looked like they were going to the beach, or going to get high, not sure which. Anyways, how are those Duluth pants? I’m not going to get my guys pants, but I’m looking into them. I’ve always worn jeans, but those work pants or the tactical pants sure do look more comfortable.
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hlbennettpls, post: 350394, member: 10049 wrote: I agree. I passed by 2 the other day that looked like they were going to the beach, or going to get high, not sure which. Anyways, how are those Duluth pants? I’m not going to get my guys pants, but I’m looking into them. I’ve always worn jeans, but those work pants or the tactical pants sure do look more comfortable.
I love them. They are a bit pricy though, and I’m not sure they would be too comfortable in south Florida. What I usually wear, are the Redhead Cordura work pants that I get online from Bass Pro Shops. I swear by these because they are tough as nails. Again however, could be too hot in your neck of the woods.
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The pants are awesome and wash up like new. I wear the coyote color to match up a bit with our red clay.
I get them from http://www.lapolicegear.com/pants.html
But search around. you can find them on sale often and sometimes they even throw in a pretty nice web belt. I must have ten of those belts around here. -
I’ve been finding most of my work clothes at Tractor Supply between Carhart and Schmit. Both are tough, cotton and comfortable.
Have used those Futbol style socks and legwear for about a year and they have really helped by keeping the cramps to a minimum that had been becoming dayending pains that lasted into tomorrows. Maybe Joe Namath had something going with the support hose he claims extended his career.
Have to wear cotton socks over them to make my boots fit properly…… -
A Harris, post: 350436, member: 81 wrote: I’ve been finding most of my work clothes at Tractor Supply between Carhart and Schmit. Both are tough, cotton and comfortable.
Have used those Futbol style socks and legwear for about a year and they have really helped by keeping the cramps to a minimum that had been becoming dayending pains that lasted into tomorrows. Maybe Joe Namath had something going with the support hose he claims extended his career.
Have to wear cotton socks over them to make my boots fit properly……Could’ve also been the liquor too… 😉
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Test – 1,2 Test – 1,2
[MEDIA=youtube]aHkzCtbSg7w[/MEDIA] -
A Harris, post: 350436, member: 81 wrote: and they have really helped by keeping the cramps to a minimum that had been becoming dayending pains that lasted into tomorrows
You start cutting line a little lower than waist high you won’t wear yourself out walking it. :-O 😀
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