Why Japanese Firms Wants Staff to Ditch Suits for Shorts at Work—And Why Women Call It Unfair

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike introduced the “Tokyo Cool Biz” campaign in April to help people stay cool at work during the hot weather. Japan experiences harsh weather conditions during the summer. The main aim of the initiative is to promote Japan’s well-known summer campaign that promotes lighter office clothing. Due to this, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government is encouraging office workers to change their formal suits and ties to more comfortable clothes such as T-shirts, sneakers, and shorts during the Summer.

Japanese Firms Turn Their Suit and Ties to Shorts and Sneakers at Work

Many people in the firm welcome the idea of wearing shorts, sneakers, and T-shirts at work especially during intense heat. Several employees say it makes working in the heat more comfortable.

A June survey by Gorilla Clinic found 53.5% opposed wearing shorts to work in the summer while 46.5% were in favour of the new recommendation.

“We want to give people more options in the severe heat, not tell them what to wear. There should be no issue as long as the work attire is not offensive to anyone,” Tokyo Metropolitan Government environmental official Noboru Watanabe told the BBC.

Why Women in Japan Oppose the Policy

After four months, the policy was introduced, which allows employees to wear shorts to work has received mixed reactions. As there are some sections of employees who said the policy is unfair to women.

In many traditional Japanese workplaces, women are still expected to wear tights if their legs are visible, even though it is not an official rule.

A few sections of women have spoken about feeling uncomfortable seeing their male colleagues’ leg hair at work. This has even led to a term on social media called ‘sunehara ‘, which means a feeling of discomfort caused by being forced to look at a co-worker’s visible leg hair.

Mixed Reactions to Tokyo’s Shorts Policy

According to a survey, one of the main reasons why people are refusing to wear shorts at work is concern about body shape and body hair. The survey also found that more women than men were against the idea. Many women are less comfortable with male colleagues wearing shorts.

Casual office wear has become more common in Japan especially at startups and technology companies.

The recommendation of the Tokyo government is making it more socially acceptable this year.

Also Read: Why Is Gold Jewellery Wrapped In Pink Paper? Here’s The Surprising Reason Behind This Tradition

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