Deborah Garlick
CEO and founder of Henpicked; Menopause in the Workplace and Menstruation Friendly
While we’re seeing more menopause friendly employers, now we need to break the taboo around menstruation in the workplace.
Talent will vote with their feet and leave organisations that don’t prioritise women’s wellbeing. Ahead of updates to the Employment Rights Bill, including greater emphasis on equality, it’s important to realise two things. First, you cannot achieve gender equality without being menopause and menstruation friendly. Second, legislation alone won’t change workplace culture: that takes committed individuals and supportive employers.
Scale of the problem
An estimated 15,000,000 people menstruate in the UK, 72% of whom are in work (Source: Office for National Statistics). We know 70–90% of women experience symptoms, and 8.4 working days per year are lost due to menstrual health symptoms. Worryingly, one in four women says their menstrual health symptoms have impacted their career. Employers need to act.
Providing easily accessible
resources enables employees
to find support discreetly.
Making a start
Creating a menstruation friendly workplace is neither difficult nor costly, but it does require commitment and care on the part of employers. The first aim is to normalise conversations around menstrual health by removing the stigma. Ask employees what’s stopping them from being their best at work and use their feedback to shape a bespoke company policy.
Training will enable employers and line managers to support and signpost their colleagues while educating all staff about menstrual health will help them recognise symptoms in themselves or others. Having opened the topic, it helps to appoint workplace champions to advocate for their colleagues.
It may take a while before people feel able to speak freely, especially those experiencing complex conditions or the deeply personal issue of fertility problems. Providing easily accessible resources enables employees to find support discreetly.
Trusted by talent
Menstruation friendly employers will benefit from boosting gender equality, increasing employees’ wellbeing, reducing absenteeism and improving productivity. As well as looking after existing talent, being menstruation friendly will attract new people seeking an employer that clearly prioritises workplace wellbeing.
As the Employment Rights Bill thunders through Parliament, responsible employers aren’t waiting to learn the next thing to do. They’re acting now because it’s the right thing to do.
