Japanese working women appear to be having issues with employers who are against them wearing glasses at the workplace. The topic has drawn the attention of social media and is being debated. Employers should realize that women who wear glasses probably have issues related to eyesight and they seldom treat it as a decorative piece or an ornament. It has become an emotive topic in Japan and has taken center stage on Japanese social media. Debates are raging on the subject of dress practices vis-à-vis women in the workplace.

BBC explains that a leading TV network studied the subject to get to the bottom of the problem.

The ‘ban’ is for different reasons. A retail chain feels shop assistants who wear glasses give a "cold impression" to the customers. In the airline sector, those who wear glasses could face issues of safety. In the beauty sector, such women could find it difficult to see makeup properly. The study concluded that in certain professions women wearing glasses could face difficulties. There is no clarity on the exact reasons. These could be a part of company policies or to socially accepted practice in specific workplaces. Whatever it be, the fact is that it is a sensitive subject, which is discriminatory in nature and has led to heated debates on social media.

Opinion of the women

Social media is having a field day with this unique topic.

Twitter attracted attention via the hashtag "glasses are forbidden." In the opinion of a professor at Kyoto University of Foreign Studies, the Japanese people were reacting to the "outdated" policies. She did not find any logic to forbid women at work from wearing glasses and feels that “It's pretty discriminatory." She went on to add that it was a reflection of Japanese thinking of the past.

The BBC recounts another issue with regard to working women - it is about wearing high heels at the workplace.

A celebrity launched a petition in which she called for an end to dress codes in Japan. She was Yumi Ishikawa, an actor and writer and she was forced to wear high heels in the course of her work at a funeral parlor. The result was a #KuToo movement on the lines of the now famous #MeToo. Incidentally, a minister went to the extent of saying that “it is ‘necessary’ for companies to enforce dress codes that mandated high heels.”

Demands of working women of Japan

According to The Guardian, in view of employers imposing a ban on working women of Japan wearing glasses at work, the women have taken up the matter via social media. The remarks on Twitter reveal their feelings. One said, “These are rules that are out of date,” while another described the reasons of employers as “idiotic.” A woman who works in a restaurant was told wearing glasses appeared to be “rude” and did not match with the kimono she wore.

Incidentally, Japanese women who go to work faced an earlier issue of being forced to wear high heels. The result was the #KuToo movement started by an actor – it became a popular mode of dissent for the women.
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