Menopause in the workplace is a hot topic right now. This is partly due to a documentary by Davina McCall that aired on Channel 4 in early May, as well as plenty of recent media coverage on the issue. But have you considered how menopause may affect the women in your business? As a manager or business owner, yes, you should be concerned.
Not recognising menopause in the workplace could lead to your employees leaving your company, and you may even run into discrimination claims if you don’t take this matter seriously.
Let’s look at some recent statistics about menopause in the workplace as highlighted in the documentary mentioned above:
- Over 80% of women in the UK say there is no designated person within the company they work for that they can turn to for help during menopause.
- A menopausal women’s brain energy levels will drop by around 25%.
- One out of every 10 women quit their jobs due to menopause.
- Discrimination lawsuits from menopausal women have tripled since 2018.
- Over four million women of menopausal age are currently employed in the UK.
- More than 40% of women feel that menopausal symptoms have a negative impact on their work and 47% said they would take a day off due to menopause symptoms without telling their employers the real reason.
We recognise maternity, we recognise mental illness, why not recognise menopause?
If you weren’t already aware of how menopause may be affecting your employees, now is the time to pay attention.
What is menopause?
First, let’s unpack what menopause actually is so that you can understand how its symptoms may be affecting women within your business.
First off, menopause is not a disease or a disorder. It’s a period of transition in the female body that women will experience at some point in their lives.
Usually, women will start to experience menopause between the ages of 45 and 55 – but the transition can even start earlier than this. It typically lasts around seven years and can last up to 14 years, in some cases.
When a woman is menopausal, they will have fluctuations in estrogen and progesterone, two hormones produced in the ovaries. These fluctuations can cause significant side effects including:
- Hot flashes.
- Trouble sleeping.
- Depression and anxiety.
- A loss of bladder control.
- Mood changes.
- Heart palpitations.
- Joint aches.
- Headaches.
- Fatigue and brain fog.
You can imagine that trying to do a normal day’s work with these symptoms would be quite difficult. This is why it’s vital to recognise menopause in the workplace.
What you can do about menopause in your business (H2 HEADING)
Now that you know just how much of an impact menopause can have on your female employees, it’s time to take action and take steps to support employees and comply with your legal obligations.
Take time to raise awareness
Did you know that menopause has an entire awareness day dedicated to it? October 18th each year is World Menopause Day.
Although you can use this day to raise awareness within your business, menopause awareness should not be limited to one day a year.
One of the biggest reasons why women do not discuss menopause in the workplace is because of the stigma attached to it. What can you do about this stigma? Ensure that all your employees understand menopause and create an environment where it is safe and acceptable to talk about it.
You could even consider introducing training for all your staff regarding the issue to fight the stigma and raise awareness.
Start the conversation
As we mentioned earlier, women who experience menopause are often too embarrassed to talk to anyone in their workplace about what they’re going through. This can even lead to staff leaving your business as a result.
It’s important to create a place that women can go to when they are suffering from symptoms of menopause that are affecting their work – or any aspect of their lives. They should feel that they can discuss their problems openly when they need to.
You should also communicate openly and clearly about any adjustments you are making to your company to address menopause.
Our advice is to nominate a dedicated employee or HR manager for women to talk to and get help from. You may want to bring in the help of a counsellor if an employee expresses distress to this dedicated person.
Allow for flexible working
There are several adjustments you can make within your business to accommodate women going through menopause. One adjustment you can make is allowing them to work from home or to work flexible hours when needed.
Another option you can provide is for women experiencing menopause to be allowed more breaks and more time to prepare for meetings or appointments.
You may also want to allow women to wear more comfortable uniforms or attire, especially during warmer weather.
There are many other ways you can support women experiencing menopause within your business, and we would love to tell you more. Feel free to get in touch with us to speak to an HR consultant about the steps you can take to better support women with menopause and meet your legal obligations.