Only 20 percent of private-sector firms have introduced the government's "Cool Biz" program in their offices, according to a Teikoku Databank survey released Thursday.
The survey shows that the campaign to combat global warming by having men dress more casually at the office so air conditioning can be turned down was in place at 20.7 percent of the polled firms and 19.6 percent said they were considering introducing the program, the corporate credit research agency said.
But the largest single group, at 49.2 percent said, it had no plans to introduce it. Many of those firms said "Cool Biz" was not the answer to solving the environmental problem.
Teikoku Databank surveyed about about 10,000 firms in late June.
By business sector, the services industry accounted for 25.5 percent of firms that have implemented the program, followed by the transportation and warehouse industry, at 23.3 percent, and the retail industry, at 21.6 percent, Teikoku Databank said.
Major companies, categorized as either capitalized at more than 300 million yen or employing over 300, made up 27.8 percent of the firms with the "Cool Biz" program, while medium and small companies accounted for 18.5 percent.