How to Choose the Best Staff Uniforms in New Zealand

Introducing staff uniforms could be one of the best decisions you’ve made for your business.

Workwear is great for reinforcing standards and processes in your business.

With the below tips, you will be able to navigate getting the best uniform vendor in New Zealand.

What Is the Staff Uniform Policy in NZ?

It is common to agree on uniform and dress standards during the recruitment process. It is wise to record the agreement to prevent future problems. The employee is always free to bring up any issues they may experience so the employer can assist.

Below are the common best practices in regards to buying and cleaning the uniforms:

• The employer provides the uniforms but the employee covers the cleaning costs.
• The employer provides the uniforms and pays the employee a laundry allowance to cover the cleaning cost.
• The employer provides and cleans the employee’s uniform.

Where the uniform is generic (e.g., white collared shirt, black pants and black shoes), the employer could ask the staff to buy it. In such a case, the employer should make sure the employee understands and has agreed to this in writing.

It is important to note that if the uniform is part of health and safety requirements, the employer must provide all appropriate protective equipment and suitable protective clothing at no cost to the employees.

What Are the Categories of Staff Uniforms?

There are two distinct types of staff workwear. The difference is in different roles you would expect your staff to carry out.

1. Dress Code/Professional Staff Uniform

To improve the general image and atmosphere of a workplace, you can introduce a dress code as a guideline to dressing up for work. What works may vary for different businesses. Apply your policy across the whole organisation to prevent discrimination.

Employees generally push the boundaries of what is acceptable. Thus, make the dress code description specific with allowance for the employer to have discretion as to what is appropriate.

Avoid making the dress code part of employment agreements because you will then need the employee’s consent to change it. Instead, put it in your workplace policy manual and ensure you bring it to all employees’ attention.

2. Safety Uniforms

Different levels of hazards exist. The degree depends on the workplace and the tasks involved. Where hazards can be eliminated or isolated, employers are required to take all practicable measures to reduce the risk of staff being harmed. Providing protective clothing might be one of the necessary steps needed to reduce the risk of harm.

Section 10(2)(b) of the HSE Act states that employers must provide, make accessible, and ensure the use of suitable clothing and equipment to protect employees from any harm that may result in being exposed to a significant hazard.

Employers can be prosecuted and fined for failing to provide adequate protective clothing and equipment, even if no one has suffered harm as a result.

What to Consider When Choosing a Dress Code

1. Form and Design of the Workwear

For public-facing employees, it is common for employers to enforce a type of dress code. Examples of dress codes include phrases like business casual, casual, formal, etc. It is important to provide concrete examples of the allowed attire and accessories to prevent confusion.

When choosing dress codes, be considerate of all body types and affiliations that may hinder adherence. Inclusive design and policy will increase compliance and reduce incidents of potential discrimination.

The Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 requires employers to ensure a nametag so far as is practicable in the health and safety of its workers. Sometimes an employer won’t be able to make an employee wear a name badge with their full name printed if this might put them in the way of potential harm from members of the public.

An employer should respect their employees’ privacy rights in terms of the disclosure of their full names to members of the public.

Function and Utility

1. Hospitality Uniforms

When it comes to your catering establishment, cleanliness goes beyond looking professional. It’s vital for the health of your customers and your survival as a business. When choosing your uniforms, keep the needs of your staff in mind.

For your chef, provide uniforms that are both functional and stylish. They need to stand out and feel pride when they go out to meet clients. Alsco NZ has a diverse range of chef jackets and aprons that are both stylish and functional.

For your catering staff, comfort and hygiene are crucial. They need comfortable pants and jerkins that allow them to add a stylish apron and work comfortably. The material and maintenance of these items play a big role in how presentable your team will look.

2. Food Processing Uniforms

The food industry deals with food manufacturing, processing, or packaging. This means that the hygienic standards are high, and your staff is the first line of defence. Even a little bit of dirt can have catastrophic consequences.

The uniforms need to be tough, minimal and sterile. The food processing industry has strict regulations for a good reason. The risk of contamination is always lurking, and any laxity can have grave results.

Alsco NZ offers a wide range that includes headwear, overalls and aprons. With over 125 years in business, we know our way around uniforms. We have developed systems that make uniform management seamless.

What to Consider When Providing Safety Staff Uniforms

1. Legal Employer Obligations

For a uniform policy to work, staff must be willing to implement and follow the policy. Employers have a legal obligation to ensure employees understand how to use protective uniforms in hazardous areas.

As a manager, ensure the below are implemented to keep your company in line with New Zealand’s regulations on safety uniforms:

• The employee knows where protective clothing or equipment is kept.
• The employee has ready access to protective clothing or equipment.
• The protective clothing or equipment is suitable for the purpose.
• The employee is properly trained in the use of protective equipment and clothing.
• The use of protective clothing and equipment by the employee is regularly monitored.
• With consent, the employee’s health is regularly monitored.

Furthermore, employers are mandated by regulation 5 of the Health and Safety in Employment Regulations 1995 (HSE Regulations) to provide suitable changing facilities.

2. Special Industry Workwear Needs

Medical & Pharmaceutical

These industries have strict hygiene rules for good reason. The people are the first line against dirt, contamination and pathogen spread. The uniforms need to be modern, hygienic and comfortable.

Due to the need for sterile conditions, medical and pharmaceutical wear has to be white and pristine. That’s why Alsco NZ doesn’t just clean dirt. We stock and sterilise your clothing as part of Alsco’s Rented Pharmaceutical Workwear Service.

Depending on the size of your company, you can choose from a wide catalogue of uniforms. They include items like dust coats, long-sleeved shirts, polycotton pants and polycotton jackets.

Manufacturing & Industrial

When your business is of a physical nature, your staff’s uniforms aren’t just uniforms. They’re what distinguishes a happy, safe workspace from a hazardous, accident-prone one. You need heavy-duty, durable and safe uniforms.

Alsco NZ offers a wide range of long-lasting, high-performance industrial workwear that’ll protect your staff. We offer the best price guarantee and reliable service that saves you the headache of sourcing, fitting, laundering and transportation. All for an affordable monthly rental fee.

We can customise the uniforms to suit your needs. This includes:

• Branding to improve your team’s morale and company image
• A range of styles and sizes, including women-friendly fits
• Made from tough, long-lasting fabrics (e.g., cotton drill, blends, flame/stain resistant)
• Sourcing from the best manufacturers in New Zealand

3. Cleaning and Maintenance

According to regulations 66 and 67 of the New Zealand HSE Regulations, designers, manufacturers and suppliers of protective clothing and equipment have certain duties. As a manager, it is important for you to be aware of them and ensure they are followed.

These include:

• Making sure protective clothing and equipment is designed in accordance with ergonomic principles.
• Design and manufacture workwear that will provide adequate protection from the harm it’s intended to protect against.
• Protective clothing and equipment must come with comprehensive information, such as how to use, clean and maintain it.
• Suppliers of protective clothing and equipment must provide comprehensive information on how to install, adjust, use, clean, maintain, repair or dismantle it.

After the supplier has taken all precautions to provide clean garments, it is important to have a storage system that prevents cross-contamination.

The Alsco locker system separates soiled and clean garments in a hygienic and convenient method. Designated areas for clean and dirty uniforms make life easier for your staff members.

What Next?

Alsco’s managed rental service understands the process of providing staff uniforms. We’ve been in business for 125 years, and we understand the necessity for uniforms.

No matter what industry you’re in, we have a solution for you. Get in touch with us today.

An account manager in your area will reach out and help you choose the best package for your needs.

For an affordable monthly rate, you get clean professional uniforms delivered to your doorstep anywhere in New Zealand, as often as you need them.

Emergency uniforms can also be availed at no extra cost!

You can never go wrong with Alsco New Zealand.

Photo: laros

Uniforms: Logo or DIY Work Clothes? Hard Evidence to Support Corporate Outfits

Why do the majority of business owners prefer the idea of corporate uniforms?

An employee can be located on the factory floor, work as a service provider or be a part of a huge financial corporation.

What remains important is the choice of workwear they use.

Especially the choice between the logo work clothes or the adoption of a DIY policy.

It’s All in the Appearance

The client is always right, the saying goes. High standards are expected from professional services and a consumer’s trust is affected by the choice of employees’ work clothes.

Imagine a worker dressed in casual work attire offering you his help. Then imagine another one wearing a neat uniform. The first one is the actual certified electronics expert and the other one is a novice. Yet, people usually conclude otherwise.

Consumers are more likely to place their trust in the person with a company logo on the shirt front. It is true that first impressions generally last. Why not dress professionally to make sure that impression stays positive?

Research confirms the idea of uniforms helping by providing visual clues to the company’s degree of professionalism. The consequence of this is that a consumer will have a higher degree of confidence in that company.

Uniformed, logoed work clothes build a ‘front-of-mind consciousness’ in the consumer, and consequently a higher degree of confidence in the company.

Image Wear as an Effective Branding Tool

Admittedly, uniforms are associated with specific types of industry, like the food and health sectors (restaurants, food processing, hospitals), and public services (police, military). But research has confirmed the overwhelming advantages of adopting a corporate uniform in almost every sector.

The idea that image wear is an effective branding tool is a widely held belief in developed economies.

The Western Workwear Report, published by Frost & Sullivan in 2010, revealed that UK companies spend an estimated €640.9 million on uniforming their workers. It’s a major investment that places the UK high on the corporate uniform and logoed workwear table. In Western Europe, the industry is worth an estimated €3.2 billion, and projections suggest it will grow by 3.3% annually until 2016.

Benefits of Corporate Uniforms Among Workers

There are many other benefits to using a corporate uniform. Consumers are not the only target. It has been proven that wearing corporate uniforms increases attention spans amongst workers. Positive outcomes are numerous:

• Better quality work and increased productivity
• Higher creativity levels
• More resourceful approaches to managing in-house issues.

According to research published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, work clothes influence worker performance. It is said that even their behaviour and attitude can change.

According to the research, wearing a lab coat can increase attention to detail, which is what laboratory scientists are required to have.

The research has also shown that it is important for the workwear to be appropriate to the job role. A painter given a lab coat showed no improvement in performance nor quality of work.

It is as important that a worker feels comfortable in their work clothes as it is to include a company logo in the design.

What Are the Practical Advantages?

There are also practical advantages to having uniformed work clothes. This is especially true for large companies with multiple divisions and departments.

First of all, it is important for workers to feel part of the company. Uniforms achieve this. In turn, this feeling improves workers’ creativity, concentration and overall performance.

For example, a major garden centre might have their nursery staff wear green polo shirts, their furniture staff wear yellow polo shirts, and their warehouse and delivery staff wear blue polo shirts. The clothing design is the same, and all staff wear the same company logo, but the image wear distinguishes in each department.

What About Using DIY work clothes?

No one can claim that a DIY work clothes policy is all that bad! In most cases, it depends on the employer. A particular work branch might be more reliant on individuals. Thus, using DIY work clothes is completely reasonable (though often there is a dress code).

Companies could be dependent on both teamwork and interaction with the public. For them, corporate uniforms are extremely important.

However, it is unlikely for a law firm to demand that all lawyers wear the same “corporate” suit with the firm’s logo on it. No magazine publisher would expect their investigative journalists to wear the company logo while interviewing people or researching news pieces.

Only the right kind of corporate uniform can accomplish a wide range of demands. Competitive sectors need to project a professional image to a consumer public. Why? Because the public expects a high level of professionalism from them. It is also important to build confidence in standards or work, hygiene and honesty.

In the end, a company can be judged by the image wear they adopt. Just as it is possible to reveal an employee’s character by the quality of their handshake.

Alsco Uniforms Improve Both Performance and Customer Service

It is widely known that well-maintained and designed uniforms go a long way. They can boost employees’ self-image, morale and performance at work.

Here at Alsco, we offer a range of industrial workwear and work uniforms that combine style and comfort with durability and safety. We want to ensure your staff look and feel their best in their perfectly fitting workwear.

If you would like to know more, give us a call to find out all the details. Grab yours now!

Amazing Benefits of Work Uniforms You Need to Stop Missing Out On

You have two options: to go for work uniforms or to go for a DIY workwear policy. If you are in doubt, imagine yourself entering your business venue as a potential client.

Picture your workers wearing uniforms and then imagine the same scenery with all of them in their own clothing.

In which scenario would you be more likely to decide to take the business seriously and make a deal?

This simple test is not based on some strong scientific facts, but it is an indicator of the general attitude toward uniforms – clients like them. However, work uniforms need to be presentable and perfectly maintained.

Industries Where Work Uniforms Are a Necessity

Luckily for all other branches of industry, there are those businesses and services where uniforms are necessary. Their experience allowed everybody else to learn volumes about the good sides of having work clothes.

Uniforms in the health, military and police sectors are almost legendary. Besides those, people recognise uniforms of the kitchen staff, hotel employees and others who work in the food and hospitality sectors.

Other industries followed their lead and businesses have started to invest in proper workwear, significantly.

Frost and Sullivan confirmed that in their report on Western European Workwear Markets from 2010. Namely, companies in the UK spent over €640 million to uniform their workers. This was almost 20% of the entire amount spent on workwear in Western Europe.

Workers in Uniforms Have Better Attitudes

It has been proven that wearing a uniform changes the way employees think about themselves. Simply by replacing everyday clothes with work uniforms, employees change their attitude toward work.

Wearing uniforms :

• improves their attention span
• boosts orientation to detail
• increases overall motivation for work

This is best illustrated with a couple of experiments presented in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. The results showed that people wearing uniforms have better-sustained attention than those who perform the same task, but without the uniform.

However, the uniform should be appropriate for the task. For example, if people believe that they are wearing a doctor’s white coat, they will be very detail oriented and focused on the task that requires attention.

On the other hand, if they are told that the same coat is a painter’s coat, they will not show the same improvement in their attention for the task.

What’s more, workwear must be of the right size to ensure the proper protection of every employee.

Uniforms are Practical in Many Ways

There are two main ways in which uniforms are practical:

• They help workers protect their own clothing 
• Industrial workwear protects people at work
• They help differentiate employees who work in different departments

People working in the food industry cannot imagine going to work and not wearing their uniforms. Overalls, aprons, and headwear protect them from splatter and stains, while also protecting the food from being contaminated.

In large companies, there are many departments and people can get confused. However, if a company decides to provide logo uniforms in different colours for every department, this problem is solved efficiently.

Other practical sides of logo uniforms include the fact that customers can easily spot a member of staff when they need help.

Also, uniforms with a logo advertise your company wherever your workers appear.

Customers Have More Trust in Uniformed Staff

The first impression is very important and long lasting. That is why every business should make the most of the fact that uniformed staff leaves an excellent impression on the potential clients.

It is more likely for a client to have more trust in an inexperienced worker in a uniform than in an expert in a DIY attire.

Harris Interactive (now Harris Poll) conducted a research on how customers feel about businesses that have their employees wear uniforms. It shows that 2 out of 3 adults claim uniformed employees leaves a positive impression on them.

People said that uniformed employees seemed more professional and that they felt enticed to do business with that company.

DIY Workwear Is Not That Bad

There are situations when a logo uniform cannot be put into a good use.

Places that do not have direct and personal contact with their clients usually do not have uniforms. They may have a dress code – like law firms, but it is unlikely that their lawyers will have obligatory logos on their suits.

However, wherever possible, high quality and well-kept uniforms should be introduced. Today’s competitive market demands that businesses use every means possible to reflect their professionalism and excellent service. Uniforms greatly help achieve that effect.

Uniforms are a better option for those businesses that involve a large number of workers. They make much more sense when a company needs to boost the team spirit and the sense of belonging.

Alsco Uniforms Boost All These Benefits

Businesses can hope to get all these benefits from their logo uniforms only if the uniforms are flawless. They need to be perfectly clean, ironed and maintained.

One messy uniform on a worker can drown all your efforts to build an image of a professional business.

Maintaining all the uniforms at the same time is quite a chore. It consumes a lot of time and it is a work that needs to be done repeatedly. Luckily, you do not have to do it.

Alsco rents uniforms for all kinds of businesses. Your workers just need to wear them and put them back in one of our lockers. We will come over, take the worn uniforms and replace them with freshly cleaned and ironed ones. All this is included in one fee.

Contact Alsco representatives and make an enquiry about this excellent service. They will tell you all you need to know about how to get perfect uniforms for your business without having to think about their maintenance.

Pros and Cons of Workplace Uniforms

Military and the police take pride in their uniforms. For their occupations, wearing a uniform is not a matter of choice, but a part of their job.

Miners, health workers, and industrial workers cannot imagine their day without their uniforms. For some, it is there for protection, while for others – it is a symbol of the work they do. Either way, uniforms are important.

Other businesses follow their lead these days. They choose to rent uniforms from Alsco, although these are not obligatory for their line of work. Different hotels, restaurants, and similar establishments are among those that opt to introduce this practice.

You can be a judge of whether it pays off or not to have them after you read the pros and cons of uniforms at the workplace.

Workplace Uniforms: Pros

• When staff wear uniforms, it makes the business look more professional. Waiters, chefs, and other staff in the catering business resemble a team or an army in their uniforms. They look classy and professional in good catering uniforms.
• Having your uniform over clothes prevents your clothing from wear and tear. All sorts of stains end up on uniforms during work hours. After work, your employees simply leave them for Alsco workers to take care of them and go home in their clean wardrobe.
• Properly designed uniforms can play an important role in safety in the workplace. They can be made of special kinds of materials, and have reinforcements on certain parts or special markings or symbols on them.
• Uniforms boost the team spirit within a company. Just like all the players in a team identify with it by wearing the same jerseys, your employees will have a stronger sense of belonging to your company.
• Employees who wear uniforms are walking advertisements. Your logo, colours or even the slogan of your company can find their place on your uniforms. Wherever your employees go, it all goes with them.
• Uniforms make everybody equal. Some people like to dress up, while others do not have the time or the money to do it. Once employees are all in the same uniforms, those gaps become invisible, and everybody is the same.
• When a person puts on a uniform, it changes their set of mind. Uniform means that the leisure time is over and the work begins. People who wear uniforms are more productive.
• The staff that wears uniforms is easily recognised by the customers. When a customer needs to be serviced or has a question, they do not want to wait. If they have to wait, they will give up. So, contact with a member of staff needs to be made quickly. If staff members wear uniforms, customers will easily find them and ask for help.
• Pools and studies showed that customers feel that they are getting better service when serviced by people in uniform. Also, they tend to trust staff wearing uniforms more.

Workplace Uniforms: Cons

While all this sounds great, there are also some downsides to wearing uniforms. Here are some of them:

• Uniforms suppress the individuality of the employees. They make everybody look the same, so the personal style of the employees is affected.
• Sometimes, uniforms can be uncomfortable. Also, they do not look good on everybody.
• Unfortunately, uniforms are not free. They cost money and that needs to be paid by an employer or the employee.
• Uniform maintenance is always annoying.

Easy Fixes for Uniform Downsides

Still, the reasons for having uniforms at work greatly outnumber the reasons for not having them. Moreover, all four reasons for uniforms are easily fixed.

• Personal style can be expressed through accessories or ways the uniform is worn.
• Uncomfortable uniforms can be altered and staff can be included in the process of choosing the uniforms. Learn how to determine the right size of your workwear for maximum comfort and you won’t face this problem again.
• Firstly, the money spent on uniforms comes back through advertisement. Moreover, renting uniforms from Alsco means that the cost can be managed.
• If you use Alsco’s managed garment system you do not worry about maintenance anymore. You get your uniforms washed, ironed, folded and delivered in time. It is all included in the price of your rental.

The Best Way to Deal With Uniforms

Obviously, uniforms are a good idea and the downsides are fixable. Your first concern is the choice of uniforms. That is something that a designer and members of your staff can help you with.

Another thing that can worry you is the maintenance. With a certain number of washings, uniforms will wear out. Not if you rent them. Alsco always brings you freshly washed and ironed uniforms in perfect condition.

The last, but not the least is the price. Again – not a real problem. Renting is better than buying. For as low as $1 a day, you can forget about your worries when it comes to uniforms.

Let’s say you buy a uniform and your employee gets replaced with another person who does not fit into the same size. Do you buy a new uniform? No. You simply contact Alsco and enjoy the amazing flexibility of their service.

Call 0800 4 ALSCO today. People from the nearest Alsco local branch will answer all your questions and help you deal with your uniform issues.

Why Use Alsco Uniforms and Workwear?

Few managers dispute the fact that a quality uniform is the number one way to protect employees from heavy soil, grease and grime, or to present a crisp, clean, dignified image to customers.

Today Alsco has literally millions of customers of all sizes around the world who have come to rely on us to make them look better and operate more efficiently with a Managed Workwear Program.

Here are a few of the reasons why securing uniform services from Alsco makes such good sense.

Economy and Value

With Alsco’s managed workwear program there is no costly initial investment. Our systems allow you to reduce uniform and image wear to a convenient, predictable budget item. Alsco takes care of the day to day management including washing, repairing and presentation, eliminating this time-consuming task from your staff and management. We get your new employees into a clean, fresh uniform from virtually day one.

Quality and Flexibility

Our workwear comes in a wide selection of fabrics, styles and colours, from tough overalls to smart corporate image wear, cotton drill for hot humid environments to polyester/cotton blends for stain resistance and lighter weight requirements.

We offer you the expertise of our in-house design department, and a guarantee of superior, quality garments, personalised company identity and short lead times on additional uniforms.

Service and Support

We will repair, maintain and replace your uniforms, size your people (or teach you how to size workwear), install secure locker systems, soiled garment bins and provide standard operating procedure wall charts, assign specific individuals to manage accounts and regularly meet with customers to ensure the best solution is always achieved.

The bottom line is:

Alsco can tailor an effective program to suit your specific needs.
We do the work while you maintain total control. Contact us now to get started! 

Benefits of Managed Garment System

Garment Tracking

Our customers receive a simple, fail-proof method of tracking and monitoring the movement of garments in and out of their premises and invoicing them accordingly.

Alsco has developed a solution through the use of Barcode labels. They hold a unique number that is assigned to individual garments. Once the number is allocated, the system stores the following information:

• Wearer or Pool Name
• Account name
• Department
• Garment style and size
• Garment age
• Number of washes
• Last pick-up and delivery

Tracking

Each time the uniform is scanned its information is stored in our data management system. From this information, we are able to produce invoices and management reports on actual usage, as well as individually tailored reports to meet your requirements.

The garment tracking system has been developed internally and tested extensively, ensuring a safe and reliable service. After careful consideration of your organisational requirements gained through site inspections and information provided by your local branch, we believe a managed personalised garment system is the correct solution for your needs.

A managed personalised garment system operates by allocating each individual employee their own garments and personalised locker. The garments are allocated unique barcode numbers that are linked to the wearer and cross-referenced to their locker number.

Our Service Delivery Person will deliver the garments into each employee’s personal locker and scan their soiled uniforms to provide usage reports.

Supply Stock

Each managed garment wearer will be issued with sufficient circulating stock to ensure they have clean uniforms available for the start of each shift. For example, if a wearer requires 5 changes of clean garments per week, Alsco will issue that wearer with an inventory of 11.

The reason why we invest in that level of inventory is to keep 5 in lockers, 5 in the laundry and one being worn. You will then simply be invoiced the unit price per garment multiplied by the agreed number of changes per week.

This managed personalised garment system provides you with the following services inclusive of the unit price per garment;

• Sufficient inventory of the garment;
• Correct sizing and fitting of current and new employees;
• Every garment laundered to AS4146:2000 or better;
• Delivery of clean garments into personalized lockers;
• Removal of soiled garments;
• Specific wearer barcode labelling;
• Repairs undertaken when necessary;
• Garment replacements that are due to wear and tear;
• Size changes on garments when necessary;
• Soiled garment bins;
• General tidying of change rooms;
• Management reporting;
• Overall system management.