The United States Navy has struggled to meet recruiting goals, and the service has the fewest warships since the First World War. However, it is facing another shortage – of pants for its working uniform, Military.com first reported.
It could be until October that the sea service receives the trousers for the Navy Working Uniform, and current stock levels are only around 13% worldwide. The focus is now on providing the ever-diminishing inventory to new recruits at the Recruit Training Command in Illinois, the Naval Academy Preparatory School in Rhode Island, and the officer training schools.
U.S. Navy Working Uniform
The specific item that is in short supply is “Article 3603.5,” which is part of the U.S. Navy’s “Working Uniform Type III” and it is described as “Trousers, NWU III.” According to the description on the official My Navy HR website, the trousers “contains four front buttons (three front buttons are concealed by fly, and one button closure for the waistband), side elasticized waist with belt loops, two-quarter top pockets, two bellowed thigh cargo pockets (one each leg), two back pockets with buttoned flaps (one on each side), and drawstring closures at the end of the trouser leg (one through each opening). The knees and seat are reinforced.”
Correct wear includes the trousers being “fastened fully on the waist with belt buckle centered over the trouser fastener,” while “each trouser leg will be bloused using blousing straps… and will cover the top three rows of the boot eyelets.” However, “in the case of extreme environmental conditions, the NWU trousers may be worn unbloused on job sites or in workspaces.”
The shortage of the NWU trousers might not seem like a huge deal, except for the fact that the NWU is “authorized for wear at all locations,” and that includes commuting, as well as shopping and running errands off-base “before, during and following the end of the workday.”
The U.S. Navy does emphasize, however, that the NWUs should not be considered a “liberty uniform,” which means that the NWU should not be worn while conducting official business, notably when business attire is appropriate, while it shouldn’t be worn in social events after normal working hours. Most importantly, sailors wearing the NWU off base cannot consume alcohol, while “consumption of alcohol in the NWUs on base is authorized as promulgated by Regional Commanders.”
Work Outfit to a Point
While described as a “Working Uniform,” the components of the NWU cannot show large stains, rips, or other significant damage. This requires the components to be replaced on a more frequent basis than other uniforms.
According to Military.com, the shortage is due to Defense Logistics Agency vendor issues, related to the production and supply chain. Those looking online have been told more trousers are expected in the first quarter of fiscal year 2025 (FY25), which begins on October 1.
However, it could be until calendar 2025 that stocks are replenished and the trousers become more readily available.
While the shortage continues, sailors are being directed to the 2POC uniform that was introduced in 2022. It is available in two colors – blue for sailors E-6 and below, while a khaki version is available for E-7 sailors and above, as well as for officers. The 2POC can also be worn off base for commuting but is subject to the same rules as the NWU.
The Navy is Not Alone in the Clothing Shortage
The shortage of NWU trousers comes two years after the United States Marine Corps faced its own shortage of the standard woodland-colored combat utility uniform – more commonly known as the “cammies.”
That shortage had become so great that last September the Corps loosened its uniform rules, and authorized unit leaders to allow Marines to wear the desert-colored cammies or flame-resistant organization gear in its place. In addition, the Pentagon awarded additional uniform contracts to American Apparel Inc. and two other manufacturers, the Marine Corps Times reported earlier this year.
The problem has been mostly resolved, but during the interim, recruits were issued just two sets of the woodland pattern 2POC uniforms.
