A Russian company is facing heavy criticism online for offering female workers extra pay to wear skirts or dresses to work. The company is calling it as part of a “femininity marathon” and an attempt to help with “team bonding”.
The campaign is being run by Tatprof, an aluminium manufacturer, till June 30. The company, a supplier for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi and the 2018 football World Cup, told the Russian media that 60 women had already taken part and rebuffed accusations of sexism.
Female staff who wear a dress or skirt “no longer than five centimetres from the knee” are given 100 roubles (1.19 pounds) on top of their normal wages – with the firm saying it is an attempt to help with “team bonding”, the Independent reported on Friday.
“Women must send the company a picture in order to get the bonus,” the company said, noting that its team consists of 70 percent men.
This sparked heavy criticism among social media users as people are calling it a “horrible treatment of women” and said the “1950s are alive and well and living in Russia”.
1.
Why bother going to work at all. The CEO wants to keep the women to feel feminine by not having short hair and putting effort in to raising kids.
BBC News – Company criticised for paying female staff to wear skirts https://t.co/fctNfDY3sh
— Jaggy2k3 (@J4GGY_DHILLON) May 30, 2019
2.
[incidentally, I am wearing jeans today but somehow don't feel less feminine… obviously something is broken in me] BBC News – Company criticised for paying female staff to wear skirts https://t.co/Tnhd3DejQE
— 🕷 Dr. Vinoba Vinayagamoorthy (@What2DoNext) May 30, 2019
3.
Wow… So #Tatprof is running a femininity contest for its employees in Russia, basically it seems so the bosses can gawk over the pictures. Disgusting abuse of power & exploiting women.
BBC News – Company criticised for paying female staff to wear skirtshttps://t.co/kbkDkULgWX
— Amie 🦊🐬 (@puddingpuff69) May 30, 2019
4.
“Company criticised for paying female staff to wear skirts”. It should be more than criticised. Dictating how women dress in the workplace is wrong in itself, and them to pay them for wearing skirts and dresses is beyond belief! https://t.co/kYr5UagIRJ
— Madeleine Bridgett (@MaddieBridgett) May 30, 2019
Anastasia Kirillova, who works in the company said the idea for the campaign came from CEO Sergei Rachkov.
