Tattoos and body piercings now welcome
Universal Studios Japan has revised its dress code for employees, effectively loosening restrictions and allowing for more self-expression among its workers. In its revised policy, the company is now allowing their employees to choose their uniforms based on their free will, The Asahi Shimbun reported. Prior to this, 20% of employee uniforms differed depending on gender, such as skirts for women and pants for men.
This time, the revised dress code has also removed the words "male" and "female" in terms of dress code, which standardises the clothing and appearance of their staff.
A company official told the Japanese daily that they are now putting premium on their employees' "personal self-expressions regardless of their gender or nationality."
Aside from getting the freedom to choose their uniforms, policies on tattoos, makeup, and hair have also been revised on the new rules. Body piercing and tattoos are now allowed for the first time as long as they are covered by clothing. According to the company, this is to respect their employees' cultural backgrounds, specifically their nationalities and religions. For hair colour, rules have also been updated to remove the word "male," who were previously subject to harsher restrictions. The word "females" were also omitted on the company's policy towards make up, which requires them to wear it in a fresh and natural manner.
Read more: Sexist workplace dress code goes viral
In Japan, a survey in 2019 has unveiled that 57.1% employees are bound by company dress codes, The Mainichi reported. Research by the Japanese Trade Union Confederation showed that 36.2% of employees said gender-specific dress codes "cannot be helped," while only 12% said "it does not make sense."
The survey exposed some gender-based rules in some companies, such as how men must wear ties and cannot wear earrings, while women have to put on makeup and should have a specific height for their heels. The research also revealed that a company policed men to have black hair, while women should have brown. Another said men should wear long pants while women should wear skirts. Colours are also regulated in one company, with men asked to wear navy uniforms while women had to wear silver.
