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Posties reveal why they always wear shorts whatever the weather

24 August 2023, 17:30

Many postmen and women wear shorts all year round. Picture: Alamy

Royal Mail posties have explained why they never wear trousers – come rain or shine.

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Ever noticed your local postie always seems to be wearing shorts?

While some sport trousers in the rain or snow, most Brits have clocked that Royal Mail workers often do their rounds with their legs on show.

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So is it part of the uniform, or just a little quirk the postmen and women of Britain have picked up?

A string of curious Reddit users put the question to a group of professionals in the hope they would finally solve the mystery – and they have.

Some insist on baring their legs in the snow. Picture: Alamy

In a thread a few of years ago, one user wrote on Reddit: "Postmen/women of the UK, why do you wear shorts all year round no matter the weather?"

"Is it a rule or a silly tradition?"

While another added: "Yeah I've seen them last week in shorts and a Royal Mail pastel blue short sleeve shirt. Hardcore. None of this DPD Hermes skinny joggers and overcoat nonsense."

Posties all over the UK replied with their answers, with most explaining their choice to wear shorts was just simple common sense.

One Royal Mail worker said: “It really is just because it gets hot doing the job.

"One round I cover I wear trousers just because of the wind (made the mistake once and had windburn all up my legs) but it’s that particular village happens to be the highest point of the town and is a massive wind tunnel. All other rounds I'm in shorts pretty much all year."

Another added: "I'm an ex-postie. I used to be 'that guy', the reason for me is that I hate sweating and walking around all day used to make me sweat my balls off.

"If it was an extreme day I might throw on waterproofs over my shorts, something I can easily slip on and off as the need arose."

A third joked: "Skin is waterproof. Walking all day is hot work."

“Skin is waterproof. Walking all day is hot work," said one postman. Picture: Alamy

One Redditor, who worked as a postie for a few months, explained there was a shorts challenge going on behind the scenes at his workplace.

He revealed: "The depot had a running bet where everyone paid £1 a week into a pot, with the winner got to give the entire fund to a charity of their choice.

"The competition was to see who could go furthest into the winter in shorts. As the snow kicked in during January it was down to two die hards. Eventually as spring kicked in it was deemed a tie, the pot was split between the two, raising several hundred each.

"At the end of the competition a supervisor also added to the pot out of his own pocket and both got a free cooked breakfast from the work’s canteen for a week in recognition of their efforts!"

The topic has been covered before on the popular forum – even then it garnered many similar responses.

One simply said that shorts "dry quickly", while another added: "There is nothing worse than wet trousers all day in the winter."