Tokyo’s metropolitan government is encouraging office workers to wear more casual clothing, including shorts, as Japan faces intense summer temperatures, according to BBC News.
Governor Yuriko Koike introduced “Tokyo Cool Biz” in April, extending a long-running summer dress initiative associated with energy saving and heat relief. The policy encourages alternatives to traditional office wear, such as T-shirts, trainers and shorts, rather than suits and ties.
Nearly four months after the change, the response has been mixed. Some workers and commentators have welcomed the more relaxed approach, saying it allows employees to work more comfortably in hot conditions. Others have argued that the policy is uneven, saying women may still be expected to wear tights when showing their legs while men can choose shorts.
The BBC reported that some women have referred to discomfort at seeing male colleagues’ leg hair as “leg hair harassment”, with the online term “sunehara” being used in discussion of the issue.
Noboru Watanabe, an environmental official at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, told the BBC the aim was to give people more choice in severe heat rather than dictate clothing. He said there should be no problem as long as workplace clothing was not offensive to others.
The wider “Cool Biz” idea was first introduced by Ms Koike in 2005, when she was Japan’s environment minister. It encouraged short-sleeved shirts as part of a national energy-saving campaign. After the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in 2011, the government expanded guidance under “Super Cool Biz” to help reduce energy use at work and at home.
Japan has been experiencing record heat and high energy costs. The Japan Meteorological Agency has introduced the term “kokusho-bi”, meaning a brutally hot day when temperatures exceed 40C, to warn residents. In the week from 6 to 12 July, seven people died from heatstroke and 4,580 were taken to hospital, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency.
Residents have also turned to heat-related products, including clothing with built-in fans, disposable wet towels, UV and heat-blocking umbrellas, and handheld fans. Experts from the Japan Academic Network for Disaster Reduction have urged people to prepare for hot weather before peak summer conditions arrive, noting that high humidity can reduce the body’s ability to cool itself through sweating.
