Women in Japan don't want to wear heels at workplace: Here's why

New Delhi : A strange rule for job seekers in Japan is trending in social media. The hashtag #KuToo on Twitter is sparking debate and many people are calling the practice as misogynist. In Japan, both men and women are expected to wear suits when out for hunting jobs, but they cannot get out of wearing heels. 

Since time immemorial, women have been fighting to find equal opportunities at their workplace, but for women in Japan, the sexism permeates even in dress codes. As such women in Japan have started a revolution against a rule that makes high heels mandatory for women.

“Both men and women are supposed to wear suits, though women can opt out of a necktie. What they generally can’t get out of, though, is wearing heels. Granted, showing up in club-worthy stilettos is a faux pas, but flats are usually frowned upon for ladies, since they’ve traditionally been viewed as too casual, and so mid-level pumps have become the de facto dress code for female job hunters in Japan,” the Japan Today reports.

Besides registering for jobs over Internet, applicants in Japan need to show their interest in the job by visiting their recruiting offices for seminars and interviews. And, it is not always possible to wear heels during the job hunt visits. Like a woman may suffer from pain in feet and may feel uncomfortable to walk in heels in the public areas. #KuToo is a combination of two words, ‘kutsu’ meaning shoe, and ‘kutsuu’ meaning pain.

This is how a few Twitterites expressed their views against the heel wearing practice

"Wearing uncomfortable and harmful shoes is not an obligation. 

We support Japanese womyn.

Let's break down the misogyny together."

"Interesting to read about the #KuToo movement in Japan to get rid of high-heel shoes wearing requirements by employers.  It's sexism. It's unhealthy. Office wear has long needed reconsideration of women in the workplace."

"It's a shame that women around the world are still fighting against such things!! Even though heels have always been symbolic of patriarchal and sexist social constructs."

"Wearing heels is similar to foot binding. #KuToo"