Its Finally Illegal To Force Women To Wear Heels To Work

Its Finally Illegal To Force Women To Wear Heels To Work Women in Canadas British Columbia province need no longer fear spraining their ankles for the sake of staying employed.Thats because lawmakers have finally made it illegal for employers to force their female employees towear heels to work, as evidenced by arecent amendmentto the 1996 Workers Compensation Act.When announcing the change in law, B.C. Premier Christy Clark called the now-obsolete heel requirement dangerous anddiscriminatory.There is a risk of physical injury from slipping or falling, as well as possible damage to the feet, legs, and back from prolonged wearing of high heels while at work, Clarksaid.This law reversal comes in the wake of a caserecently brought to the U.K.s Parliamentby Nicola Thorp, who was allegedly told to go home without pay after arriving to her temporary receptionist gig in flats.Refusing to purchase the pair of 2-4 inch heels mandated by her temp agency, Thorp instead started a petition agains t mandatory gendered uniforms. The petition, which garnered more than 150,000 signatures, made it all the way to Parliament in April where it wasultimately rejected.Rather than pass a true ban on sexist dress codes which, in theory, should already be covered under Britains2010 Equality Act politicians voted instead to leave the issue to employers discretion,askingthem to review their dress codes and consider whether they remain relevant and lawful.Some womendo prefer to wear heels to work, it should be noted, but it should only ever be just that their preference. And to Parliaments ambiguous response, we cant help but second the words of Samantha Power, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, whowroteon TwitterThe next petition should be one requiring men to wear high heels for a 9 hour shift before they insist women do.Fairygodboss is committed to improving the workplace and lives of women.Join us by reviewing your employer