British Airways’ full fleet of crew members can, at last, opt for pants as part of the company's uniforms. Longer-term cabin crew employees have already been able to don pants instead of skirts. But the airline's 3,000 newer hires that joined the company since 2012 have had to deal with a stricter dress code, which required female crew members to wear skirts, except when religious or medical reasons called for exemption.It's taken two years of pushing for pants to bring the more gender-equalizing uniforms to fruition. Unite, the union for British Airways' crew members, told The Guardian that 83% of the fleet wanted the option of more covered-up uniform bottoms for "warmth and protection." Another timely rationale for wanting an expanded, egalitarian dress code: to be more amply covered against the Zika virus or malaria.So why have recent hires had to adhere to a more antiquated, gendered dress code? Apparently, it's because they joined the airline under different terms than their more seasoned peers in the aftermath of crew strikes in 2010 and 2011. (Female crew members have been able to wear pants on lengthier flights since 2003, when uniforms for the airline's long-haul flights were redesigned.)"British Airways’ stance was unbefitting of a modern airline in the modern age," Unite's regional officer, Matt Smith, told The Guardian. "Not only is the choice to wear trousers a victory for equality it is also a victory for common sense and testament to the organizing campaign of our members."