December 23, 2011
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A Washington state mail carrier successfully has fought for his right to bear a Santa costume after he was told by a supervisor the outfit isn't allowed while he's delivering mail.
Letter carrier Bob McLean has been dressing as Saint Nick for the holiday season while on his route in Bellevue, Wash., for over a decade. But this year shortly after Thanksgiving a supervisor at the beleaguered U.S. Postal Service, which is losing billions of dollars a year, put an end to the tradition. Apparently a fellow mail carrier had complained that McLean was not wearing official post office attire and, therefore, wasn't recognizable as a USPS employee.
“The government is shutting me down because it’s a nonpostal regulation uniform,” McLean, who has been working with the postal service since 1971, told The Bellevue Reporter.
McLean was inspired to start wearing the costume after people commented that his white beard made him look a bit like Santa. (He dyes his blond hair white this time of year.) He's beloved wherever he goes, visiting senior centers and even causing traffic jams as drivers pause to get a look.
“They stop him on the corner and want group pictures with him,” said Brenda Archuletta, manager of Amore Chocolates on McLean's route, told the Reporter. “Little kids, they just stare because they wonder.”
A few years ago, when he took his family to visit Bellevue's popular Christmas attraction Snowflake Lane, some 50 people lined up to have their photos taken with him.
McLean said that the first reason that he was given for not being able to wear his Santa getup was safety, followed by the fact that it was not a proper uniform. Finally a direct order came down, which he said he could not disobey.
“This was the first time; I don’t know what happened. I don’t step on anyone’s toes,” he said. Dressing as Santa for McLean is not religious, he added. "It’s secular. It’s about giving."
His union filed a grievance over the matter. (McLean kept on wearing his Santa hat, though left the red outfit at home.) After a hearing Thursday, McLean was told he could wear the outfit again.
"There will be a Santa in Bellevue," McLean told The Reporter. "I'm just glad it's all resolved."
Image credit: iStock
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