Menopause at Work: Before you offer a solution, ask this question

Someone tells their manager that menopause symptoms are starting to affect them at work. The manager wants to help, so their brain immediately goes into solution mode.

Should we change their hours? Let them work from home? Reduce their workload? Do we need Occupational Health?

Our advice might surprise you.

Before you start changing things, have the conversation.

You want to offer useful support. But you do not yet know what that looks like for this person.

With World Menopause Day on 18 October, there will understandably be plenty of discussion about what employers should be doing. It is a useful reminder that supporting menopause at work starts with understanding the person in front of you.

Menopause affects people differently at work

One employee might be struggling with concentration. Someone else might be exhausted after several nights of poor sleep. Another might be finding the temperature in the workplace unbearable.

These symptoms can affect people during perimenopause too, before their periods have stopped.

Some people will need practical changes. Others may simply want their manager to understand what is happening without wanting anything changed at that point.

That is why automatically reducing someone’s workload or changing their responsibilities can miss the mark. A well-intended decision may leave them feeling that you have made assumptions about what they can manage.

The same solution will not help everyone.

What should a manager ask about menopause?

You do not need to be a menopause expert to start a supportive conversation. You certainly do not need to diagnose anything.

Find somewhere private, give the person time and ask:

• “How is this affecting you at work?”
• “Is there anything here that’s making things more difficult?”
• “Is there anything we could reasonably change that would help?”

Then listen to the answers.

Let them decide how much personal information they want to share. Agree what, if anything, needs to be communicated to others rather than assuming colleagues should know. Acas recommends private conversations that allow the employee to explain their experience and what support might help.

The aim is to understand what is difficult at work and agree a useful next step.

What workplace changes might help?

Once you understand the issue, you can explore changes together.

Depending on the person’s needs and their role, these might include:

• Improving ventilation or providing a fan
• Allowing additional breaks
• Offering flexibility around start and finish times
• Providing access to a quiet place to rest
• Agreeing home working where practical

These are options to discuss, rather than a checklist to apply to everyone. Acas gives examples of changes employers can consider based on individual needs.

Be clear about what you have agreed, record it and arrange a follow-up conversation. You need to know whether the change is helping and whether anything else needs attention.

Are reasonable adjustments required for menopause?

Menopause is not automatically a disability. However, menopause or perimenopause symptoms may meet the definition of disability under the Equality Act 2010 if their effect on normal day-to-day activities is substantial and long term. Where the legal duty applies, employers must make reasonable adjustments.

You can also offer practical support where symptoms do not meet that definition.

If symptoms are affecting attendance or performance, take time to understand the connection before deciding how to respond. Acas advises employers to handle menopause-related absence sensitively and consider how symptoms may affect someone’s work.

This is where getting HR advice can help you work through the individual circumstances and your responsibilities.

Use World Menopause Day to start better conversations

Policies and awareness have their place. Managers also need to understand how to put that support into practice.

For a smaller business, a useful place to start is making sure managers feel able to listen, discuss practical options and recognise when they need further advice.

Do not assume you know what somebody needs before you have asked them.

Once you have had that conversation, follow through on what you agree.

Need help with absence or reasonable adjustments?

If the conversation raises questions about sickness absence or workplace adjustments, we have grouped useful resources around that challenge in our Resources Hub.

Browse resources to help you manage sickness, absence or reasonable adjustments →

If you need help deciding what is appropriate for your business and the employee, we can help you work out the next step.