Rez O. Lewshun said:

I'll wear the uniform right when they pay me better
Nothing better than a new millenium Air Line Pilot walking down the terminal; no blazer and no hat. Representing the finest in male flight attendant image that would make any San Fran boy blush.....
Look like flight attendants....get paid like flight attendants....
Rez,
I agree. The hat makes a guy look like the Maytag repairman and will eventually go the way of the four-course range approach. It's a carryover from the military. However, if the company says wear it, I think a guy ought to wear it, at least in the terminal.
There is a certain "showbiz" aspect in the pax business ( cargo guys...ignore all the following ). When you walk through the terminal, people look at you and even if subconsciously, form an opinion of you and your company, right or wrong ( there is no reality...only perception ). Does this affect their buying habits ? I don't know, but it's a small thing to do just in case it does...especially these days.
Recently, I was non-revving from CLT-ATL on DL and saw a very young Airways Express FO standing line for the JS. The kid looked like crap...no hat...no freakin' TIE for God's sake !! In his uniform ( or what he was willing to wear of it ) with his company ID prominently displayed for all to see.
I'm afraid this is a sign of the times. Don't like the pay ? Feel you get no respect ( with due acknowledgement to Rodney Dangerfield ) ? You'll show 'em by dressing like you came to dump the trash ? I can only ask, where is your respect for yourself, your company, and your profession ?
Is the hat important in the overall scheme of human events ? Absolutely NOT !! And I hope they go away as they only kept hydraulic fluid out of your hair on the walkaround.
What one might want to consider is the general question of how he presents himself to the ticket-buying public in this time when every ticket purchase counts. Do "they" care about your hat ? No. Do they care about the impression left with them by the person who has their well-being in his hands ? I would think they do. It's not about the hat.
Being presentable ( in whatever form that takes ) is pretty easy to do...it may be in your own personal best interest to do that. Just a thought from a guy whose hat is now a spider farm in his closet along with about 100 old clip-on ties.