Article by Viory.Video
Video Credit:Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Environmental Bureau
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has shattered decades of rigid office tradition by encouraging employees to swap suits for shorts, expanding the ‘Cool Biz’ campaign to slash energy consumption amid rising costs ahead of summer.
Footage captured at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government’s Bureau of Environment office on Friday shows employees working in t-shirts and shorts, with lights dimmed during lunchtime.
“Previous Cool Biz initiatives focused on things like coolness and comfort, setting the timing and dress code accordingly,” explained Kazuo Shigeta, the public relations officer at Bureau of Environment.
“However, this time, Tokyo Cool Biz incorporates the perspective of using energy wisely. Therefore, it is a year-round initiative,” he continued.
This builds on the ‘Cool Biz’ programme launched in 2005 to reduce summer electricity use, extending it into a year-round energy-saving initiative that includes flexible working hours and remote work.
The policy shift comes amid surging energy costs and supply volatility – driven by ongoing conflicts in the Middle East. By relaxing dress codes, officials hope that high office temperatures will not compromise productivity.
“In some cases, depending on the nature of the work, specifically work that does not involve customer service, we might even allow shorts, and we encourage that,” Shigeta noted.
“It might be difficult right away, but I think that little by little, we will be able to choose clothing that is more appropriate for the time, place and occasion, as well as the temperature, and that will make it easier to work,” added Hideyuki Watanabe, a staff member at the bureau.
This year, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government has accelerated the ‘Cool Biz’ initiative’s start date to April 3, responding to increasingly earlier rising temperatures and a rise in global energy prices.
Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike said she supports ‘comfortable, cool clothing’ due to a ‘tough outlook’ for power supply.
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