NAVADMIN 188/09 & Navy Working Uniform Now Authorized Off Base

Story Number: NNS090626-27
Release Date: 6/26/2009 7:11:00 PM

By Senior Chief Mass Communication Specialist (SW/AW) Bill Houlihan, Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Public Affairs

WASHINGTON (NNS) — The Navy Working Uniform (NWU) is now authorized for wear off-base, during routine stops and at eating establishments during the prescribed workday.

In NAVADMIN 188/09, Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), Adm. Gary Roughead, expanded the occasion for wear policy, which has been in place for six months.

Roughead consistently stated that the possibility for changing the policy hinged upon a timetable driven by the Navy’s chiefs’ mess.

Once the leadership mess provided feedback to Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (MCPON) (SS/SW) Rick West, indicating that Sailors across the Navy understood the correct manner to wear the uniform, it was understood that he would recommend to CNO and Chief of Naval Personnel (CNP), Vice Adm. Mark Ferguson, when the time was right to allow the uniform off base.

According to West, that time is now.

“Communication from the Force and Fleet Master Chiefs has been unanimously positive. Our Sailors are ready to introduce this uniform to the American public,” said West. “That’s what CNO was waiting for and this decision is a direct result of chief petty officer (CPO) feedback. It’s been sincerely gratifying to be able to watch this process work as well as it has.”

The policy differs from the language in NAVADMIN 343/08 in that, up to now, routine stops were not allowed. That meant Sailors were prohibited from visits to child care centers, gas stations, brief stops at convenience stores or banks. Now those stops are authorized.

“Our Sailors are proud of this uniform,” said MCPON. “This has been the number one feedback item from the fleet since I took office, (Dec. 12, 2008) and they have not been shy about their wishes to wear this uniform in town. Our Sailors have been trained to wear it and will wear it proudly.”

West underscored the importance of waiting for the right time to open up the occasion for wear policy. He said that while many wondered why the original wear policy was put in place, it was important to ensure every Sailor knew how to wear it before allowing it outside the lifelines of ships and bases. He also said he kept a close eye on various regions to see how aggressive leadership was in training the fleet to wear the NWU.

“I watched Navy Region Mid-Atlantic and I saw how the chiefs in that region were engaged in getting this right from day one. The training was consistent and it was effective. They deserve a lot of credit for the expanded policy, because they did it the right way in the largest fleet concentration area. Leaderships engagement coupled with Sailor feedback was what drove this recommendation (to expand the policy) to CNP and CNO.”

The revision includes aligning the NWU and Camouflage Utility Uniforms (CUUs) occasion for wear policies and offers more flexibility than the rules governing the wear of other working uniforms.

The transition to the NWU will continue as stipulated in NAVADMIN 343/08. Multiple regions across the United States and overseas are still not wearing the NWU due to distribution constraints, so West pointed out that the manner of wear policy is even more critical now as Sailors transfer to those areas. Leadership (CO/CMC) has been authorized to wear the NWU since December and should already be wearing it in the areas where Sailors will soon be showing up.

“We have people rolling from one region to another and coming from boot camp, wearing the NWU. I’m looking to them as the Sailors who are going to meet the standards as set forth in the NAVADMIN and the Uniform Regulations, but more importantly, I expect the CPO mess to maintain the standards expected of our high caliber Sailors,” said West.

The NAVADMIN also states that wear of the NWU/CUU will be restricted inside the National Capital Region (NCR). Navy personnel on staffs located in or visiting the NCR will not be able to wear the NWU or CCU as their uniform of the day. Commanders, according to the message, may prescribe the NWU/CUU for those Sailors in the NCR requiring that uniform for work that would soil the uniform of the day.

“I look forward to seeing the public’s reaction to our new uniform,” said West. “And I know our Sailors are eager to get out there and show it off.”

For more news from the fleet, visit www.navy.mil.

NAVADMIN 188/09

RTTUZYUW RUEWMCS0000 1771511-UUUU–RUCRNAD
ZNR UUUUU
R 261511Z JUN 09
FM CNO WASHINGTON DC//N1//
TO NAVADMIN
INFO CNO WASHINGTON DC//N1//
BT
UNCLAS//N01020//
NAVADMIN 186/09
MSGID/GENADMIN/CNO WASHINGTON DC/N1/JUN//
SUBJ/NAVY UNIFORM UPDATE//
REF/A/MSG/CNO WASHINGTON DC/N1/092022ZJUL08//
REF/B/DOC/NAVPERS 15665I/01JAN2003/
NARR/ REF A IS NAVADMIN 190/08, UNIFORM UPDATE.
REF B IS U.S. NAVY UNIFORM REGS.//
RMKS/1. THIS NAVADMIN ANNOUNCES CHANGES TO THE SCHEDULED FLEET
AVAILABILITY OF THE E1-E6 SERVICE UNIFORM, AVAILABILITY OF THE IMPROVED
PHYSICAL FITNESS UNIFORM (PTU) SHIRT AND PROCEDURES FOR ADDRESSING NAVY
WORKING UNIFORM (NWU) COMPONENT ISSUES RELATED TO BUTTONS AND BOOTS.
2. THE SERVICE UNIFORM FLEET AVAILABILITY SCHEDULE AS OUTLINED IN REF
A IS REVISED AS A RESULT OF ROBUST COMPONENT PRODUCTION EFFORTS AND
HIGH POPULARITY THROUGHOUT THE FLEET. COMMENCING 1 SEPTEMBER 2009,
SERVICE UNIFORM COMPONENTS WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE AND ORDERING
AT NAVY EXCHANGE UNIFORM CENTERS LOCATED AT NAVY EXCHANGE REGION
SOUTHEAST, NORTHEAST, EUROPE, JAPAN AND GUAM.
3. THE NEW “GENERATION 2” PTU-SHIRTS WILL BEGIN ARRIVING IN NAVY
EXCHANGES AND WILL BE AVAILABLE ON LINE OR THROUGH THE UNIFORM SUPPORT
CALL CENTER ON 30 JUNE. THIS NEW T-SHIRT IS 100 PERCENT POLYESTER,
HEAVIER WEIGHT, MOISTURE WICKING, ANTIMICROBIAL, WITH A HIGHER THREAD
COUNT. OPACITY AND LENGTH IMPROVEMENTS EXPRESSED BY THE FLEET HAVE
BEEN INCORPORATED. GEN 1 SHIRTS WILL STILL BE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE
UNTIL STOCKS ARE DEPLETED.
4. NWU COMPONENT QUALITY CONCERNS REPORTED BY LIMITED MEMBERS OF
THE FLEET INCLUDE LOOSE BUTTONS AND BOOT DISCOMFORT. BOTH ISSUES HAVE
BEEN THOROUGHLY REVIEWED BY THE NAVY CLOTHING AND TEXTILE RESEARCH
FACILITY AND THE RESPECTIVE MANUFACTURERS. LIMITED EARLY PRODUCTION
RUNS OF SHIRTS AND TROUSERS WERE FOUND TO HAVE INSUFFICIENT BUTTON
STITCHING. THIS SITUATION HAS BEEN CORRECTED BY THE MANUFACTURERS.
BUTTON REPLACEMENT IS AVAILABLE AT NAVY EXCHANGE UNIFORM SHOPS AT NO
COST. NAVY EXCHANGE POC LISTED BELOW WILL PROVIDE REPLACEMENT BUTTONS
TO DEPLOYED COMMANDS UPON REQUEST. BOOT DISCOMFORT HAS BEEN FOUND TO
BE LARGELY ATTRIBUTABLE TO WEARING INCORRECTLY SIZED BOOTS.
MANUFACTURERS HAVE BEEN CONDUCTING FIT CLINICS AT ROLLOUT LOCATIONS TO
HELP ENSURE CORRECT CHOICE OF BOOT SIZE AND PROPER FIT. SAILORS ARE
ENCOURAGED TO TRY BOOTS ON PRIOR TO PURCHASE. SAILORS SUSPECTING THEY
HAVE DEFECTIVE OR IMPROPERLY FITTED BOOTS CAN RETURN SAME TO THEIR
CLOSEST NAVY EXCHANGE UNIFORM SHOP FOR REPLACEMENT.
5. FILE THIS NAVADMIN UNTIL CHANGES ARE INCORPORATED INTO THE
QUARTERLY BUPERS DIRECTIVE CD-ROM CHANGE CONTAINING REF B. IN THE
INTERIM, FOR MORE INFORMATION ON UNIFORMS AND UNIFORMS POLICY, VISIT
THE NAVY UNIFORM MATTERS WEBSITE
HTTP://WWW.NPC.NAVY.MIL/COMMANDSUPPORT/USNAVYUNIFORMS/.
6. POINTS OF CONTACT:
– HEAD, NAVY UNIFORM MATTERS OFFICE: MR. ROBERT B. CARROLL AT
(703) 614-5076/DSN 224 OR EMAIL AT ROBERT.B.CARROLL(AT)NAVY.MIL.
– DEPUTY HEAD, NAVY UNIFORM MATTERS OFFICE: CMDCM(SW/AW) ART RIVERS AT
(703) 614-5075 OR EMAIL AT ARTHUR.RIVERS(AT)NAVY.MIL.
– NEXCOM: MR. GENE GONZALEZ (757) 631-4125 OR EMAIL AT
EUGENE_GONZALEZ(AT)NEXWEB.ORG.
7. RELEASED BY VADM MARK FERGUSON, N1.//
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