Japanese women wage war against sexist dress codes with #KuToo movement, say no to high heels at workplace

Tokyo: Taking differential rules for men and women in the workplace head-on, women in Japan have launched an online movement against workplace dress codes which necessitate heels. [caption id=“attachment_6308371” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. Wikimedia commons[/caption] While both men and women are supposed to wear suits while job hunting and to their workplace, heels are the de facto dress code for working women in Japan as flats are usually frowned upon for females, reports Japan Today. ‘#KuToo’, which borrows its writing style from the #MeToo movement, is the hashtag under which Twitter users have been calling for a change in formal dress codes for women. Calling it the modern version of foot-binding, female Twitter users have expressed rage at the socially ordained practise of wearing heels at the workplace. “I want them to get rid of pumps for job hunting. Pumps are the modern equivalent of foot-binding. It’s a mistake to force women to wear them. They say it’s proper manners to wear them? It’s a medical injury!” a Twitter user said. Another woman tweeted in Japanese, saying: “Wearing uncomfortable and harmful shoes is not an obligation. Let’s break down misogyny together.” Wearing heels, either while travelling to work or while at work, is a common cause of injury and cuts among women and can cause greater medical complications related to the spine, among other problems. Doctors have warned that when heels are worn, the foot is in an unnatural position which may inhibit blood circulation to the feet.