UK receptionist wins battle over heels
Author: Professor Joyce Harper
A London receptionist was sent home from work for refusing to wear heels. Nicola Thorp wore flats to work on her first day at the finance company, PwC. She was hired by recruitment company Portico and staff there told her that she had to wear 2-4 in heels to work at PwC. She was laughed at when she suggested that the men should wear heels.
Today PwC have asked Portico to review the policy. Nicola said “I am pleased the battle that I have had over high heel has highlighted the problem and made a difference, but there is still so much more to do. How can wearing high heels make you better at your job? The same goes for make-up. Women should not feel under pressure to wear make-up at work. Why should women have to paint their faces for their bosses?”
“These big corporate firms are world leaders in many respects but the way they treat women in 2016 is ridiculous. I have asked women to come forward with their stories of inequality in the workplace and so many have contacted me. I am going to fight on to address this. I find it difficult to grasp that in the corporate world women in 2016 cannot go into the office without make-up without being judged harshly. Things need to change”.
She has launched an online petition to make it illegal for companies to require women to wear heels. So far she has 100,000 signatures. You can sign it here – https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/129823
Read More:
Global Women – Do you wear uncomfortable clothes?
Image credit – The Telegraph
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I think this is a serious gender equality issue. Why should women have to wear heels and make-up to do a job? It is unnecessary pressure – a woman’s appearance is not linked to her ability to work.