Tackling the workplace taboos: women’s reproductive health
Over the last year or two we have seen an increased willingness to talk about menopause in the workplace, from parliamentary debates and Acas guidance, down to individual employers adopting workplace menopause policies, appointing menopause champions and encouraging open conversations between staff and managers about their own experiences. Similar conversations are happening, to varying degrees, in relation to menstruation, fertility treatments and miscarriages. Is women’s reproductive health and its effect on work finally becoming a workplace priority?
Blake Morgan Associate, Madeleine Mould, considers the issue of women’s reproductive health in an article first published in the Rewards Strategy digital magazine issue 238.
Menstruation
For many women, menstruation has little to no impact on their ability to work as normal. However, a significant minority may need to take sick days on a regular basis to cover the worst days of their cycles, or may choose to “battle through”. This could be because of fears over their sickness absence levels being too high, the lack of statutory sick pay for the first three days of sickness absence, or feeling uncomfortable about discussing the reasons for their absence with their managers/HR.
Miscarriages and fertility treatment
In many workplaces, infertility remains a taboo subject, carrying with it a lot of stigma and grief. As a result, many women may be missing out on support from their employers. Time off to attend fertility treatment appointments is currently the subject of a Private Members’ Bill going through Parliament and there is another Private Members’ Bill which, if passed, will extend employment rights in relation to miscarriage.
Menopause
The Menopause and the Workplace report found that 10% of women aged between 45-55 left work because of menopause symptoms. This could mean losing highly experienced women at the peak of their careers. Whilst the Government has confirmed that ‘menopause’ will not be made a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010, a number of women have brought successful disability, age and sex discrimination cases related to their menopause symptoms.
The key to all these issues is a workplace culture in which employees feel able to speak to their employer if they need additional support or flexibility. The move towards hybrid working and flexible hours may be a positive but for many that is not an option.
Read the article in full here and contact our employment lawyers for legal advice on women’s reproductive health and what employers can do.
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