Day #10 – Tuesday – June 25, 1974
The Case For Wearing A Uniform
The Belgians have instituted a grand idea that I would like to see extended to our shores. Their labor ministry has ordered all people working in Belgium to wear clothing to match their occupations, whether they be cooks, surgeons, firemen, sewermen or welders.
Besides the factors of safety and hygiene, what intrigues me is the esthetic value of the plan.
This would mean, for instance, that I could enjoy a restaurant meal without having to clutch my stomach at the sight of some humpty-dumpty roll of a waitress in Western-type garb that makes her look like the cow on the range.
I could go, too, into a bank and see a female teller who doesn’t look like she’s moonlighting from her regular job as a streetwalker.
I could walk into a specialty shop or a department store and the saleswoman wouldn’t look like a low-paid professional mourner in her faded basic black and pearls.
It would be absolutely marvelous if homemakers could be included in this group. Instead of the standard uniform of chenille robes, hair in rollers, and worn-down slippers, they might have something designed to make their roles more appealing.
The Belgian labor ministry notes that the uniform code would give a boost to the textile industry. In this country it would give a boost to marriage.
Lord knows we need it.
This post is part of a series, Ten Days of Count Marco, which examines the ten Count Marco columns leading up to the July 8, 1974 Count Marco letter.