SoraNews24 —Japan News—

Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.

TOP

» Japan
» Pantene ad asks why people in Japan are forced to look the same when job hunting

Featured

Weird
Studio Ghibli
Jobs

Pantene ad asks why people in Japan are forced to look the same when job hunting

Oona McGee Sep 29, 2018
Tweet

Hair care brand shines a light on outdated practice that forces women to sport the “job-hunting hairstyle” in order to gain employment.

If you’ve been in Japan a while, you may have noticed there’s a uniform for everything, even if you’re not a sailor-suit-wearing student or a salaryman loosening his tie for the Cool Biz season. Whether you’re doing the housework, attending a wedding, or out on a mountain hike, there’s a special dress code that everyone abides by, so passersby can know what you’re doing at a glance, and a sense of uniformity with the group can be maintained.

One of the most obvious displays of uniformity can be seen when the country’s new graduates begin job hunting every year. This is when you’ll see groups of new recruits, or “freshers” as they’re called in Japan, out and about in their fresher uniforms, which consist of a standard white shirt, black suit, and black shoes.

AOKI行ってきた〜😚
旦那が5000円以上買ってくれてSexyZoneのステッカー貰えると思ったら「フレシャーズ限定です」って言われて貰えなくて…
帰ってよくよく考えたらそんな事ないよね…明日クレーム入れたらいいのか？😥#AOKI #SexyZone pic.twitter.com/z5TU4z7FaP

— 雪実 (@yamayamami3) February 3, 2018

While men are given a bit of leeway with their hairstyle and choice of necktie, which should be plain and sensible, women are required to abide by some additional rules, which include a certain length for the suit skirt, a height for the heel, the requirement to wear stockings, and a specific hairstyle, specifically a low ponytail and a side-parted fringe.

▼ Some people say women at company entrance ceremonies look like clones.

ひえっ

日本の新入社員集合写真が「クローン」状態！「異常」「工業品？」と驚くユーザーも！ - Togetterまとめ https://t.co/N68L2yexKc @togetter_jpさんから pic.twitter.com/d9JELc8GFp

— IQ 4.20 (@atarashiisekai2) June 9, 2016

Now, hair care brand Pantene is challenging people to reconsider this requirement for all new recruits to look the same while job hunting in Japan. On 24 September, they sent out this tweet on their official Twitter account, igniting a debate about the uniformity requirement for new recruits.

就活の髪型どうあるべき？ #1000人の就活生のホンネから見えてきたのは、就活ヘアに対する息苦しさ、そして自由な髪を求める声でした。 #就活をもっと自由に難しい問題だけど、これが今のパンテーンの思いです #HairWeGo https://t.co/t1GPHeviyk pic.twitter.com/b5cpsS26M3

— パンテーン (@PanteneJapan) September 24, 2018

The above tweet reads:

“What should a work hairstyle be like? Looking at the raw opinions of 1,000 job hunters, their collective voices reveal the oppression of job-hunting hair and call for freedom of hairstyles. It’s a difficult problem to push for more freedom in job hunting, but this is the current thought of Pantene.”

The next day, Pantene ran a full-page ad in Nikkei, the world’s largest financial newspaper with a daily circulation of more than three million. The ad shows a girl sporting the typical job-hunting hairstyle, along with the question, “If I attend the company recruitment ceremony with my own hairstyle, will my job offer be taken away?”

https://twitter.com/torarirure/status/1044586249762131968

It’s a valid question, and one that many young women have no doubt asked themselves, despite never daring to take the risk by letting their hair down to find out. After all, in a country where group harmony is considered more important than the individual, any new recruit who doesn’t conform could be viewed as a potential liability for the company.

At the bottom of the ad, it says “Hoping that looking for a job without a ponytail becomes a natural thing for this country.”

これ、パンテーンの広告なんだけど、日経に載せるあたり正解。僕はこういう就職活動とは無縁だったけど、その頃から就活ってちょっとズレてるし、おもしろくないってずっと思ってた。今、変化のときだと良いと思う #hairwego pic.twitter.com/Z5AgemhLFc

— motocom (@motocom27) September 24, 2018

As well as appearing in the newspaper, the ad is also currently being displayed on board Japanese trains.

パンテーンの素敵な広告みつけた🙏“ひっつめ髪をほどいた就職活動が、この国のあたりまえになりますように。”テンプレートで自分をアピールしてもお互い面白くないから、自分らしい格好でそれを認めてもらえる会社に入社するのがあるべきカタチだと、個人的にはおもっている pic.twitter.com/r45gUUMlVy

— とみえり (@eriiica07) September 23, 2018

「自由な髪型で内定式に出席したら内定取消しになりますか？」全員リクルートスーツにひっつめ髪の日本の就活ってはっきり言って狂気の沙汰これはナイス広告パンテーン pic.twitter.com/6D1uBjvgRz

— akaneakain (@akaneakain) September 25, 2018

▼ And also along a large wall at Shibuya Station.

東急渋谷駅、連絡通路の広告。パンテーンが攻めている。 pic.twitter.com/R6EW7qQAYH

— ✨こやまうんてん✨™ (@koyamtn_tm) September 24, 2018

Looking closely at the ad, the design incorporates remarks from 1,000 women surveyed who gave their opinion about the hairstyle requirement, printed across the page in small print, with different gradations to create the image.

#パンテーン #就活生のホンネ

自由な髪型で内定式に出席したら、内定取消しになりますか？

今日の日経新聞の一面広告
ほんとあるあるすぎて、めっちゃ共感。就活時代あの奇妙でみんな同じ髪型にして私の魅力が伝わるか！
と私的に最大限反抗し笑、ロングの髪をバッサリ肩上ボブにしたことを思い出す pic.twitter.com/hpakbfxRwI

— Sayuri/future architect 🌎 (@missssuniversee) September 25, 2018

https://twitter.com/vmustk/status/1044956178357219328

According to the survey conducted by Pantene, 81 percent of respondents said they had experienced having to fabricate their feelings in order to fit in with a company while job hunting. Some of the remarks featured on the advertisement include:

“I wanted to get the job so I wore a ponytail even though the style didn’t suit me.”
“I thought it was strange that everyone had the same style but I didn’t want to be the only one cut off from the group so I had to do it.”
“This mass-produced hairdo makes me feel like there’s no me.”
“I have a complex about my round face so I don’t like ponytails but I felt pressured to follow the recommended hairstyle.”
“I had to dye my naturally brown hair black.”

It’s true that, like some schools, certain companies also prefer their new recruits to have black hair. The thinking behind it is that brown hair looks like it has been dyed, regardless of whether it’s one’s natural hair colour or not.

With the importance of women’s issues and gender equality in Japan in the limelight lately, Pantene’s new ad campaign is a timely topic that’s receiving approval from many Japanese people online, who have been vocal about the need to change uniformity in Japan’s job-hunting world.

With companies like Godiva running full-page ads in newspapers to draw attention to Japan’s unusual Valentine’s Day customs, brands are calling out traditions and pushing for people to redefine societal customs in a way that’s never been seen before. We can’t wait to see which company will be next to come out with an ad as inspiring as this one.

Source: Hachima Kikou
Featured image: Twitter/@vmustk