Soldiers use the mirror of an Army Humvee for an early morning shave in Djibouti in November 2024. (U.S. Air Force)
WASHINGTON — Soldiers who require prolonged shaving waivers, which disproportionately affect Black troops, could be removed from the Army under an updated policy, the service announced Tuesday.
“This is about uniformity, discipline and standards. And this is about training,” Army spokesman Steve Warren told reporters. “This standard applies equally to all soldiers, not just minorities.”
More than 40,000 soldiers have temporary shaving waivers — nearly double the amount from five years ago, he said.
All soldiers must be clean-shaven on duty when in uniform or civilian clothes “with temporary exemptions for medical reasons and permanent exemptions for religious accommodations,” the Army said in a statement.
“Soldiers who cannot comply with grooming standards ... may be administratively separated,” the service said.
The policy bars permanent shaving waivers and requires medical personnel to craft formal treatment plans for affected troops. Soldiers have been able to grow a beard through a waiver process for pseudofolliculitis barbae, which causes painful razor bumps and mostly affects Black men.
“One of the things that we’ve determined is that we need to train our soldiers better on how to take care of their shaving needs. For whatever reason, kids these days, they’re struggling with, you know, proper shaving technique,” Warren said. “Pseudofolliculitis barbae, a lot of that just has to do with your shaving technique is what we’ve determined. A vast majority of minority soldiers, African-American soldiers, are within the standards all the time.”
The new policy requires exemptions for non-religious reasons to be supported by a temporary medical profile and an exception-to-policy, or ETP, memo granted by a lieutenant colonel in the chain of command, the service said.
All religious accommodations under this directive will be reviewed in the next 90 days, Warren said.
Army Secretary Dan Driscoll signed the policy Monday and it went into effect the same day, said Lt. Col. Orlandon Howard, an Army spokesman.
All military services have faced growing legal and internal pressure to relax grooming standards as debates on social media and in various other forums highlight the struggle to balance tradition and uniformity with individual rights. Military officials have argued facial hair could prevent a perfect seal of a gas mask.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on March 12 ordered a services-wide review of existing standards for physical fitness, body composition and grooming. The review of grooming standards will also include the wearing of beards, according to the memo.
The following day, the Marines enacted a policy that troops diagnosed with pseudofolliculitis barbae could be separated from the service if grooming exceptions are needed beyond one year.
For years, military branches have carried out various studies on the beard issue to determine whether regulations could be loosened for the rank and file. So far, no branch has taken the step beyond special exceptions.
In the Army, clean shaves became a requirement just before World War I, when chemical weapons were deemed a serious threat. The Navy and the Coast Guard were the last branches to ban beards, doing so in 1985 and 1986, respectively.
“This update reinforces our culture that fosters discipline — and discipline equals readiness,” Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael Weimer said in a statement. “Through a phased implementation we are working with providers through commanders to effectively address grooming standards to ensure we maintain a professional force.”
