(CNN) — UPS’ familiar brown uniforms are getting their first major redesign since 1925.
The company’s 125,000 global delivery workers will soon have new clothing options in performance fabrics, adorned with an enlarged UPS logo. The fashion update will involve only new styles–there will be no change to the uniform’s ubiquitous brown color.
Referring to its drivers as “industrial athletes,” UPS said in a statement that the newly refreshed uniforms would improve their “comfort, safety and performance.”
Drivers can now wear a pullover polo-style shirt or a short-sleeve shirt that is made from moisture-wicking fabric for sweat.
Employees’ pants will have a lower waist for a less boxy and modern fit. The brown UPS baseball cap will be made from a “heat-regulating mesh material” instead of plastic.
Last year, UPS came under scrutiny for not having air conditioning in its trucks. Nearly one million people signed a petition demanding UPS make changes.
The company said such a move would would be ineffective. “Our delivery vehicles make frequent stops and the entry doors and rear doors are frequently opened and closed throughout the day,” UPS previously told CNN.
The new uniforms will also try to address safety concerns. The redesigned shirts have a slightly larger logo on the front and back that is stitched with “reflective technology to make employees significantly more visible in poor light conditions,” UPS said.
The company is calling the uniform changes the “most significant” since drivers were allowed to wear shorts in 1991. Before that, short sleeves and baseball caps were introduced in 1968. UPS drivers have been wearing a version of the current uniform for 96 years.
The redesigned uniforms are being phased in and are provided free of charge to employees.
Employees can also still wear the old uniforms if they want, the company said. Discarded old uniforms will be recycled.
