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Post and Telegraph Department; commissioner; 1960s - 1980s; New Zealand
Overview
This women’s postal uniform ensemble was worn by both posties and postal workers across New Zealand between the mid-1960s and early 1980s. It replaced the earlier green, battle-dress influenced uniform suit that had been worn by posties from the 1950s.
Change is necessary
In a New Zealand Post Office Magazine article from 1964, this uniform was introduced to the community by announcing that a change of new uniform was necessary as the old uniform was becoming out of date:
It’s about time Post Office people had new uniforms. Fashions change; new materials are available. Our present uniform, influenced in its design by the battle dress of the war years, is getting out of date.
Uniformed staff in the Post Office cover a wide age group, from teenagers who are growing rapidly and who like to feel they are right fashion-wise, to elderly men who prefer a more conservative outfit. Then, too, the uniform must be designed to suit the type of work which these people do (1).
Women Posties
The first postwoman in New Zealand commenced delivering mail in Wellington in 1942 to replace the men who had been called up for military duties. Although they were paid less and completed shorter mail routes, this marked the beginning of the incorporation of women into the Post and Telegraph Department in New Zealand (2).
Prior to the introduction of these grey uniforms in the 1960s, women did not have an official postal uniform which they were required to wear during their rounds.
Reference:
(1) New Zealand Post Office (1964). New Uniforms. New Zealand Post Office Magazine. Vol. 4, No. 3.
(2) Deborah Montgomerie (2001). The Women’s War: New Zealand Women 1939–45. Auckland University Press.