Civil defense originally refers to the protection of civilians in the events of war-related disasters. Today, it encompasses a wide range of protection, rescue, and recovery activities not only aimed at minimizing the damage caused by war but also addressing natural and man-made disasters such as wildfires, typhoons, and floods. Civil defense uniforms are worn by volunteers who participate in civil defense training organized by practitioners, government officials, and military personnel. Therefore, more than 3,350,000 persons (+6.5 % of the Korean population) likely should wear civil defense uniforms. As such, the functionalities of civil defense uniforms need to be reexamined and improved in response to the wider and newer responsibilities of the civil defense system to protect the civil defense personnel from potential hazards and to help better serve the Korean citizens. The essential functions of civil defense uniforms were proposed by analyzing various civil defense activities. Per the level and type of safety hazards, the design and materials for civil defense uniforms should ideally differ, similar to civil defense uniforms in other countries. We surveyed the current Korean civil defense uniforms’ design, material compositions and important functionalities such as water repellency, water pressure resistance, and flame resistance. Compared to common functional workwear, we suggest room for improvement in the functional properties of civil defense uniforms. This research paves a new road for the functional design of civil defense uniforms to address a wider range of hazards, potentially leading to rational guidelines for protective workwear and government uniform development.