How about: last Friday of every month is non-uniform day?

Only last Friday?

Yes. Every Friday would be an extravagance unbefitting the professional military.

Not even for religious reasons? ;)

Jeebus! You join the military, you wear a fucking uniform.

You don't join the military and then say that you want to change the uniform 'cos it's my religion, belief or whatever.

If the uniform 'conflicts' with your personal ideas, then don't fucking join.

You can peacefully ask/lobby for the uniform to be changed before you join. The military are in the end are employed by a civilian government

Has anyone actually done this and had the uniform changed before they join?

"You gotta allow me to wear a turban or I won't join..."

Generally in the UK at least employers are expected to make 'reasonable' adjustments based on various factors for their employees. I don't really see why that shouldn't apply to the military

Alan B wrote:Has anyone actually done this and had the uniform changed before they join?

"You gotta allow me to wear a turban or I won't join..."

Police forces did.

True. But somehow I think the military are a different case.

Indian regiments?

Yes. That would be country specific where a particular style of dress is a national dress - er, the Swiss Guards?

Though I suspect that in the latter case if they actually had to engage in combat a 'combat uniform' would be worn.

In Western military I suppose I would accept a change in uniform for non-combat roles only (dress parades, etc.). But in a combat role I would expect full combat gear - any departure from bodily protection could put other lives at risk.

Wearing a small cross (or Flying Spaghetti Monster ) under your clothes isn't military uniform but I would be surprised if it was actually banned

Alan B wrote:Has anyone actually done this and had the uniform changed before they join?

"You gotta allow me to wear a turban or I won't join..."

Yes. The first Sikh to get a religious exemption did exactly this.

Of course, as usual, he "asked" through a lawsuit challenging the lack of religious exemptions for turbans similar to those already present for yarmulkes, etc.

mrjonno wrote:Wearing a small cross (or Flying Spaghetti Monster ) under your clothes isn't military uniform but I would be surprised if it was actually banned

Wearing of religious jewelry is permitted so long as it doesn't interfere with safety, doesn't interfere with proper wear of uniform and equipment, and isn't visible. The same holds true for non-religious jewelry, with the exception of rings (one per hand, with a wedding set considered one ring), watch, ID bracelet (plus medical alert bracelet as needed) (one each of these last two), and earrings (female Soldiers only, specified size and material, nothing dangling).

If anyone is really interested in the regulation, or is suffering from insomnia, I present you with ... the regulations.


https://www.army.mil/e2/c/downloads/337951.pdf

Paragraph 3-4 covers jewelry,

https://www.army.mil/e2/downloads/rv7/r ... 600_20.pdf

Paragraph 5-6 (4) covers religious exemptions.

Note that it does not contain the latest change allowing turbans, etc to be approved at Brigade level as per the OP article.

Weaver wrote:

mrjonno wrote:Wearing a small cross (or Flying Spaghetti Monster ) under your clothes isn't military uniform but I would be surprised if it was actually banned

Wearing of religious jewelry is permitted so long as it doesn't interfere with safety, doesn't interfere with proper wear of uniform and equipment, and isn't visible. The same holds true for non-religious jewelry, with the exception of rings (one per hand, with a wedding set considered one ring), watch, ID bracelet (plus medical alert bracelet as needed) (one each of these last two), and earrings (female Soldiers only, specified size and material, nothing dangling).

Exactly its 'reasonable adjustments', the military is slightly different of course to the civilian world as doing stupid things for no reason is part of military discipline but in the end at least a in democracy the military is still the product of a civilian society and can never be completely independent of its values which include (non) religious tolerance

Let's be honest, there's probably a need to attract people of an Arabic background who perhaps have some knowledge of the language and customs into the military, given the places that a lot of the conflict is happening in the world at the moment. Therefore I can see why they might want to do things that will make such people more likely to sign up.

Once someone in our team shaved at night not to wait on toilet queue in the morning during apprentice in the army. In the afternoon commanders understood it and punished him, they're sick of beard in Turkish army.

I once shaved with natural water at the entrance of a base, I was even civilian.

Edit: btw this is the right thing imo just they're a little too tight about it in our army

Weaver wrote:doesn't interfere with proper wear of uniform and equipment, and isn't visible.

The fomer seems rather vague and subjective, especially when compared to the latter.