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| One of Daimaru's upscale department stores in the western city of Osaka adopted 'period badges' proposed by female employees (AFP Photo/Kazuhiro NOGI) |
Tokyo (AFP) - A Japanese department store has scrapped a "period badge" for employees that let colleagues know they were menstruating, after the policy sparked an internet storm, a spokeswoman said Friday.
One of
Daimaru's upscale department stores in the western city of Osaka began the
programme last month, adopting an idea proposed by female employees.
The
voluntary badges were intended to alert colleagues to the idea that coworkers
with severe menstrual pains -- or other period-related needs -- might require
longer breaks or extra help lifting heavy objects.
But after
local media reported the policy, prompting outrage on Twitter, several
customers rang the store to question the merit of what is now dubbed a
"period badge".
"We
are not scrapping the programme itself because it is strictly for internal
communication, among those who work here," a company spokeswoman told AFP.
But she
said the store will use something other than the badge.
"Most
of our staff are women and staff members support this programme. We will
continue in a better way," she said.
The idea
came as the luxury store prepared to launch a new section for products related
to female hygiene on a floor dedicated to young women's fashion.
During its
planning, staff openly discussed their experiences with periods and ways to
improve the work environment.
To launch
the section, the store worked with "Seiri-chan", a comic-book
character whose name means "Ms. Period", which has been made into a
new movie.
The store
then created a badge that announced the start of the section's opening from November
22 on one side, with the pink character on the other.
"There
was a time when speaking openly about periods just did not happen. Now we can
do this," the Daimaru spokeswoman said.
"Everyone
experiences periods differently. Through discussions, we believe this can lead
to greater understanding of our experiences," she said.
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