For years, police uniforms were designed only for male officers. Female officers were forced to make do with uniforms designed for men, resulting in their often wearing ill-fitting and uncomfortable clothing. Wearing a men’s uniform may result in an unprofessional appearance due to the poor fit, and can possibly significantly hinder a woman’s performance and mobility on duty by not moving with them naturally.

For more than 40 years of their 80-year history, Blauer has been making women’s styles for law enforcement, and continues to innovate in creating better uniforms made just for them today. With female officers accounting for 13 percent of the nationwide police force, women in law enforcement can now take advantage of the fact that uniforms and equipment are now created with their needs, comfort, and performance in mind.

Made To Fit

What are the fundamental differences in designs between men’s and women’s uniforms? First, men’s uniform shirts are designed for long arms, large rib cages, and relatively flat chests. Men’s pants are designed with a long rise and zipper and are built for straight, narrow hips. When women try to wear these uniform designs, it results in sagging, heightened exposure of the abdomen, and a need for excessive tailoring. Designs made specifically for female officers remedy these problems through precisely tailored design and construction.

The Blauer line of women’s uniforms is built to fit a female officer’s body. Our team of product development and design specialists has worked to make a uniform focused on fit and comfort for women. Women’s uniform patterns are designed to fit a smaller trunk and waistline, shaped hip, various chest sizes, and shorter arms.

Professional and Clean

While patterns are altered to fit the female body, Blauer also puts a strong focus on matching the details of men’s and women’s garments to maintain the traditional, professional look of our uniform styles. For women’s uniform shirts, the garment is cut shorter, tapers around the waist, and the pleated chest pockets are smaller than the men’s style. Other more casual shirt styles, like the B.Cool Performance Polo Shirt, are built to flatter female silhouettes with an hourglass-shaped cut. Thus, despite differing cuts and sizes, women’s uniforms feature the same polished and professional look as the men’s.

Blauer women’s police uniform pants are built to fit the curves of a woman’s body, which allows female officers to wear their pants at a proper height over the waist rather than wearing men’s pants, which often need to be pulled up far above the natural waistline to stay put. Blauer pants are available in in women’s numerical sizing, from size two to 32, rather than the traditional men’s waist sizing. Properly fitted pants let women wear their duty belt directly at the waist, giving the officer quick access to her gun and reducing the heavy weight of a belt sitting too high on the torso. Additionally, wearing properly fitted uniform pants allows for body armor and outer vest carriers to be worn in the proper place - heightening protection against the threat of projectile and ballistic weapons.

More Than Just Police Uniforms

Blauer also offers multiple women’s styles for Fire and EMS professionals, because a well-fitted and comfortable uniform is important for any public safety occupation. Like our police uniform pants, Blauer women’s EMT pants have a lower rise than men’s pants and are available in women’s numerical sizes. For heightened protection at the station or on call, Blauer offers women’s pants made with Nomex fabric. Fire and EMS uniform shirt patterns are tailored in the same way as police uniform shirts, to precisely fit a woman’s body.

We continue to refine and reinvent our line of women’s uniforms, footwear, and accessories as we receive constant input from female officers, firefighters, and EMTs in the field. By continuing to improve our products and provide a better fit for women with careers in public safety, Blauer recognizes and respects the equal role that female public safety professionals play in their agencies and communities, and seeks to provide them with greater comfort, performance, and more based upon their specific needs.

For a full list of Blauer’s women’s styles, please visit http://www.blauer.com/madeforwomen .

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About the Author: Lauren Coakley writes on topics of interest to the Public Safety community for Blauer.