What Do Women's Workwear and Safety Gear Have in Common
In male-dominated trade industries such as construction, mining, oil and gas, engineering, logistics, manufacturing, automotive, etc. some women may be attracted to enter such trade. And since there are only a small fraction of tradie women in some examples given earlier, the supply for female form-fitting workplace PPE can come secondary compared to men.
Tradie women particularly need workwear that is fitting, comfortable, workplace safety compliant, and can make them do their best at work. In some cases, when some tradie women get pregnant, maternity workwear is needed.
Why Are Women-Specific Workwear & Safety Gear Important?
Most women have smaller bodies compared to men, so it's important to have snug-fit workwear instead of wearing a loose one. When women wear trade clothes that are too large or unfit for them, they can be uncomfortable at work which can hamper productivity and double the risk of safety hazards.
Workwear made specifically for women must have the right range of length, width, and other body form sizes. They must also have the same compliant work safety materials available to tradie men. This is to make sure that they too, can have access to safety workwear that can protect them from potential work accidents, give them ease of movement while on duty, and keep them comfortable even in long shifts.
Things To Consider When Buying Your First Piece of Women-Specific Trade Clothing
Before you start looking for women's workwear, you must consider the following:
- Body measurements - When looking for the right women's workwear for yourself, check your shoulder, bust, waist, and height measurements. Knowing your body measurements can help pick which size you are after.
- Work clothing requirements - Be sure to take note of the work clothing compliance and safety requirements you need to adhere to. Some workplaces may have more strict requirements than others.
- Materials used - Reading the product description highlights the materials used and defines if they are low or high-quality. High-quality work clothing materials are an investment when it comes to increased safety, cost efficiency, and durability. There may be substitute materials but know for a fact that high-quality workwear often meets compliance certifications and is tested in many industries where such requirements are duly enforced.
- Comfort / Ease of movement - Good quality workwear should offer you comfort, breathability, and ease of movement. Wearing work pants that are too tight can slow you down when you need to walk distances or run fast at work. Loose work pants can also make you distracted at work, thus, reducing productive hours. Ill-fitting women’s work footwear can also increase fatigue when required to work for longer hours.
- Budget - Budget is another factor to consider when buying workwear. Depending on what type of product you are after and the durability you need it to withstand will be where you can consider products at different prices.
- Work conditions - Many work conditions drive the need for increased protection in workwear. Workplaces where chemicals, explosive and flammable materials, harsh weather conditions, wild animals, static, pathogens, waste materials, high levels of noise, or low visibility work sites may require you to wear PPE that protects you from head to toe.
- Functionality and Convenience - Functional and convenient women's workwear helps you from getting the job done faster and has extra compartments for your other handy tools. Some women's workwear may offer easy access zippers or gartered pants to allow you to change wardrobes instantly as in the case of emergency responders, laboratory staff, warehouse tradies, construction workers, etc.
How To Dress for a Day at the Office, or Onsite
Corporate, hospitality and retail industries commonly have corporate, business or smart casual, and casual wear in their dress code. Industrial or outdoor worksites on the other hand require PPE or rugged wear.
When dressing for a day in a corporate office, you can pair your corporate or business casual women's workwear with either slip-on leather shoes, soft toe lace-up or elastic-sided leather boots.
If you're in retail or hospitality, you can dress in short or long sleeve polos or shirts while wearing sneakers or slip-on shoes.
Dressing for outdoor or industrial work sites may require you to have either long or short sleeve polos and shirts, jackets, steel cap or composite cap boots, coveralls, overalls, hard hats, and hi-vis vests.
Bottom Line
Provision for the right women's workwear helps tradie women perform at their best, have equal work opportunities, and have an increased level of protection within the work premises.
When choosing the right women's workwear, you should always invest in high-quality, fitting, durable, functional, and reasonably priced work clothing. At Tradies Workwear and Safety store, we stock some of the trusted women's workwear brands like Tradie, Aussie Pacific, BAD Workwear, Caterpillar Workwear, ELWD, Steel Blue, Blundstone, Rossi, Oliver, and many more. If you are wondering where to find the best women's workwear, you can simply check out women's trade clothes from our online shop or visit us in-store in Adelaide and Perth.
