BBC Homepage
  • Skip to content
  • Accessibility Help
  • Your account
  • Notifications
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • More menu
More menu
Search BBC
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
Close menu
BBC News
Menu
  • Home
  • InDepth
  • Israel-Gaza war
  • War in Ukraine
  • Climate
  • UK
  • World
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Culture
More
  • Tech
  • Science
  • Health
  • Family & Education
  • In Pictures
  • Newsbeat
  • BBC Verify
  • Disability
  • BBC Trending

Company criticised for paying female staff to wear skirts

  • Published
    30 May 2019
Share page
About sharing
Tatprof femininity marathon campaign materialImage source, Tatprof
Image caption,

Campaign material for the "femininity marathon" encouraged women to wear skirts and dresses

ByKatherine Zeveleva and Chris Bell
BBC Monitoring and BBC News

A Russian company has been heavily criticised for offering female employees cash bonuses to wear skirts or dresses to work.

Tatprof, an aluminium manufacturer, is running a "femininity marathon" campaign until 30 June.

Female staff who wear a dress or skirt "no longer than five centimetres from the knee" are paid 100 roubles ($1.50, £1.19) on top of their regular wages.

In order to receive the bonus, women must send the company a picture.

Many social media users have responded with incredulity to what some described as the "horrible treatment of women".

Prominent feminist blogger and journalist Zalina Marshenkulova called Tatprof's initiative "news from the Middle Ages" on her Telegram channel, external.

You might also be interested in:

  • Photographer 'overwhelmed' by response to bald eagle picture

  • Living off-grid for almost 80 years

  • 'Holy Spirit' saves German driver from speeding fine

The company, a supplier for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi and the 2018 football World Cup, told Russian media, external it rejected accusations of sexism and said 60 women had already taken part.

"We wanted to brighten up our work days," a spokesperson told the radio station Govorit Moskva.

"Our team is 70% male. These kinds of campaigns help us switch off, rest. This is a great way to unite the team.

"Many women automatically wear trousers to work, which is why we hope that our campaign will raise our ladies' awareness, allowing them to feel their femininity and charm when they make the choice of wearing a skirt or dress."

Users of Twitter in Russia were not impressed.

"The company does not see this as sexist and believes that 'the factory has transformed'," tweeted @shagaliev97.

"A 100-rouble bonus for women who will come in short skirts and in makeup to... brighten up the day of a male-dominated team," read another tweet. "Indeed, why do we need feminism when one can just please men for money?" they asked.

Dumplings and pull ups

The company has planned other so-called "femininity" events in June, including a competition to see who is the quickest at making dumplings.

Anastasia Kirillova, from the company's department of corporate culture and internal communications, said the idea for the campaign had come from CEO Sergei Rachkov.

"He is very concerned about this issue - mixing gender roles," she told local news website Business Online, external.

"And he really wants to maintain the female essence in every female employee of the company, so that young women do not have male haircuts, do not change into trousers, so that they engage themselves in handicraft, project all their warmth into raising children."

The company is also holding competitions for its male employees. Last week it staged a pull-up contest.

More on this story

  • Russian women duped in sexist videos targeted by extremists

    • Published
      2 July 2018
    Woman's face blurred out, surrounded by men
  • Is this World Cup still sexist?

    • Published
      26 June 2018
    Female football fans

Top stories

  • Police name Manchester attacker who killed two at synagogue

    • Published
      41 minutes ago
  • What we know about Manchester synagogue attack

    • Published
      27 minutes ago
  • What footage tells us about Manchester synagogue attack

    • Published
      7 hours ago

More to explore

  • What we know about Manchester synagogue attack

    Worshippers gather near the scene of the attack
  • What footage tells us about Manchester synagogue attack

    Two police officers are seen pointing their weapons at a man lying on the ground who is blurred
  • Does the UK go far enough to protect children from conspiracy theorist parents?

    A treated image showing Kate Shemirani on the left and Paloma on the right
  • Ozzy Osbourne 'wouldn't change a thing', he told BBC film

    Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne kissing
  • How Taylor Swift made herself too big to fail

    Side-by-side portraits of Taylor Swift at different times in her career, under a 'BBC InDepth' logo. On the left, she has straight hair and wears a sparkly pink outfit, looking left. On the right, she is younger, has curly hair and wears a black sequined outfit, looking right. The background features a vinyl record design with star decorations.
  • How much time could Diddy spend in prison?

    A sketch in copurt shows Sean "Diddy" Combs wearing glasses and a yellow prison jumpsuit. There is a police officer sketched behind him
  • Should I use olive oil for frying? How to choose the right cooking oil

    A stock photo shows a woman pouring a big bottle of sunflower oil into a deep wok pan on an electric hob with cooking ingredients all around her and her kitchen cabinets and oven in the background.
  • Why BBC sent undercover reporter into a busy London police station

    Rory Bibb, a young white man with dark, curly hair, dressed in the uniform of Metropolitan Police civilian staff, a navy zip-up top with a badge saying "designated detention officer" and royal blue epaulettes. He is standing against a blank white background.
  • Relief and new baby for asylum family of child suffocated in Channel crossing

    A newborn baby is carefully held up by his doting father, with mother in background
loading elsewhere stories

Most read

  1. 1

    I'll change the monarchy when I'm king, says Prince William

  2. 2

    Police name Manchester attacker who killed two at synagogue

  3. 3

    Baroness Mone accuses chancellor of 'inflammatory' language

  4. 4

    What we know about Manchester synagogue attack

  5. 5

    Only Fools and Horses actor dies aged 68

  6. 6

    I'm not resigning, Met Police chief says after BBC investigation

  7. 7

    Hamas military leader in Gaza objects to ceasefire plan, BBC understands

  8. 8

    Say sorry to children for Covid errors, ex-children's commissioner tells ministers

  9. 9

    Does the UK go far enough to protect children from conspiracy theorist parents?

  10. 10

    How much time could Diddy spend in prison?

BBC News Services

  • On your mobile
  • On smart speakers
  • Get news alerts
  • Contact BBC News

Best of the BBC

  • A heartfelt comedy exploring adoption and parenthood

    • Attribution
      iPlayer

    Added to Watchlist
    Trying has been added to your iPlayer Watchlist.
    Trying
  • Director Steven Spielberg shares the soundtrack of his life

    • Attribution
      Sounds

    Added to My Sounds
    Desert Island Discs has been added to your My Sounds.
    Desert Island Discs: Steven Spielberg
  • Unravelling the mysteries of the human brain

    • Attribution
      iPlayer

    Added to Watchlist
    Secrets of the Brain has been added to your iPlayer Watchlist.
    Secrets of the Brain
  • Paul Sinha is quizzed on crisps and cricket

    • Attribution
      Sounds

    Added to My Sounds
    Paul Sinha's Perfect Pub Quiz has been added to your My Sounds.
    Paul Sinha's Perfect Pub Quiz
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • Terms of Use
  • About the BBC
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookies
  • Accessibility Help
  • Parental Guidance
  • Contact the BBC
  • Make an editorial complaint
  • BBC emails for you

Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.