Menopause-related symptoms can be debilitating. Many workers say they lack employer programmes – and have no choice but to leave their roles.
The topic of the menopause is becoming less taboo in some countries, as grassroots campaigns like Menopause Mandateand Let’s Talk Menopause help break down stigma and build awareness. Yet its professional impact on women (and anyone who experiences the menopause) remains largely unaddressed, say experts.
In a late 2023 survey, UK workplace-healthcare provider SimplyHealth surveyed more than 2,000 working women aged 40 to 60. Twenty-three percent considered resigning due to the impact of the menopause, and 14% are said thy are planning to hand in their notice. Although the survey’s sample size is small relative to the seven-million women in the UK workforce in that age bracket, it does support anecdotal evidence from women speaking out publicly about their experiences as a menopausal worker. And if the issue remains unaddressed, it could impact millions of workers who take the same decision to leave.
Plus, even for workers who don’t leave, the financial toll of sick days, unpaid leave and missed opportunities due to menopause adds up to an astronomical cost. Researchers from the Mayo Clinic estimate women’s losses at $1.8bn (£1.43) per year in the US alone.
Can’t stop laughing at “the menopause.” I’m gonna call it that when it finally comes for me.
“Can’t today I’ve got the menopause.”
Removed by mod
Wow dude. So much ignorance in so few words. Amazing.
Why can’t we see this in the modlog?
I still see the comment. I’ve been seeing that a lot lately, comments still fully visible with people in the thread commenting about them being removed.
Text copy doesn’t work in connect like I’d expect (long press just hides or shows the thread), but a paraphrase of what was said was, “menopausal days, period days, special treatment for some who want to be, and should be, equal”. Basically someone who thinks like that trolley meme where people in front of the tram should die to be fair to the ones who died behind it.
I prefer everyone have the option to not work when they feel like shit, even though that will mean some people will get out of work more often than others. Generally I prefer work days where I feel fine over days off when I feel sick, but that’s just me.
I think workplaces in general should allow for sick leave whenever it’s needed anyways; regardless of your sex.
This would make it easier for people who are ill with something that is not transmissible and does not completely prevent them from working to show up to work to do only necessary and essential workplace tasks, and go home so that they can recover more quickly from their illness while maintaining the income they need for themselves and provide some productivity that the company can benefit from without taxing their health.
To be clear; there should never be a penalty that you are forced to pay with your health in order to keep your job. You should be allowed to show up to work to work as much as your health permits you to; and you should be entrusted entirely to decide how much work you can output without jeopardizing your own health and wellbeing.
