How Employers Around The World Are Helping Women Cope With Menopause

Menopause and work, around the globe

No matter where a woman lives, she’ll experience menopause. Menopause symptoms vary around the world, and so do menopause policies in the workplace. 

About 25 million women+ transition through menopause each year. That number has slowly been doubling, with an estimated 47 million new women entering this phase of life each year.

Every woman’s journey is unique. Several factors impact it, including a woman+ overall health and well-being, culture, race/ethnicity, and community with which a woman+ identifies.

At pausitive health, we’re committed to discussing the differences and helping women of diverse backgrounds manage symptoms.

Asian, Black, and Latina women+ begin menopause earlier, on average, than white women. The risk of conditions like hypertension, osteoporosis, and breast cancer increases during menopause, so earlier onset means more years of risk.

• Asian women report fewer symptoms than Western women.
• Black women report more hot flashes than their white counterparts. The menopause journey also often lasts longer.
• Latina women have more vaginal symptoms, like vaginal dryness, which can lead to painful sex.

Even for women who experience minimal symptoms, menopause is a pivotal time in a woman’s life.

And one that lasts many years – up to a decade or more –  there’s no hiding the fact that menopause can impact a woman’s work performance.

The consulting firm, Frost & Sullivan, calculated menopause-related global productivity losses at $150 billion a year. Add the cost to the healthcare system, and the price could be higher than $810 billion.

What is your company doing about it?

UK menopause workplaces

If you’re in the U.K., you’re at least paying attention to the issue topping the headlines.

Nearly a million women leave U.K. employers for menopause-related reasons.

It’s prompting menopause policies and flexible work environments.

In Australia, menopausal women get paid leave.

These examples from around the world are case studies that shine a spotlight on this issue and have the power to change how menopause is viewed at work.

U.S. employers should analyze case studies from around the globe. Now is the time to pay attention to the issue and begin implementing changes.

The impact of menopause at work

Opinium surveyed Vodafone employees in the U.K., Germany, Spain, Italy, and South Africa.

The findings include:

• 62% of women experiencing menopause symptoms said it impacted them at work.
• 33% hid their symptoms.
• 50% felt there was a stigma around menopause discussions.
• 44% of women were too embarrassed to ask for support at work.
• 66% agreed that they need more support at work.

As a result, the company is rolling out a global training and awareness program.

It will take more global companies to change the tide.

In an international marketplace, U.S. employees benefit from changes within global companies.

Diageo produces over 200 alcohol brands, including spirits and beer.

They recently launched global menopause guidelines in the U.S., Canada, USVI, and the United Kingdom, with more countries to follow.

The company offers counseling and mindfulness sessions through its Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and increased work flexibility when needed. That includes changes to work patterns and sick pay.

Menopause policies

Future Super is an Australian retail superannuation company that offers six days of menstrual or menopausal leave a year for women. That’s in addition to regular sick leave and vacation days. No doctor’s note is required.

Future Super even publicly posted the menstruation and menopausal leave policy for others to view and emulate. They call it “A bloody good policy.”

The policy allows women to take up to 6 paid leave days each year. That’s in addition to the routine sick policy.

Six months into introducing the policy, the company reported 22 percent of female employees used it.

The global communications company, Edelman U.K. and Ireland, offers ten paid days each year for anyone experiencing menopause or supporting someone with menopause.

Of note, the paid leave is not just for women. The spouse gets support too.

Dark Horse, a U.K. creative sports agency, created an open-source menopause policy that anyone can download and adapt.

CEO authenticity

The CEO, Melissa Robertson, even penned a piece about “losing her mind” during menopause. She talked about sending random text messages that meant nothing, and she didn’t remember sending them. She said she has holes in her vocabulary.

Can you imagine if the average rank-and-file employee told their boss these things? They might be fired!

By sharing her story, Robertson opened the door for others to do the same so women don’t have to cope with menopause in silence in the workplace.

She says empathy is the typical response.

Other women leave corporate America to create a startup that solves menopause concerns.

Helen Normoyle, a top marketer in the U.K., left Boots, a health and beauty retailer, to create a startup inspired by her own experience with menopause.

“Brain fog” symptoms, which can include a reduction in cognition, focus, concentration, and memory, are temporary but can be scary, causing some women to believe they may have early dementia. In turn, fear may make a woman less likely to talk about her symptoms or even seek help. Hormonal changes are believed to be a cause of “brain fog,” but hot flashes, night sweats, and insomnia may also contribute significantly to this state of mind.

Health tech investments will make it impossible to ignore menopause at work for much longer.

The momentum is building as many women are founding companies dedicated to finally solving the symptoms of menopause.

While it’s always been a natural part of the life cycle,  there is commonly a lack of knowledge about what the menopause journey involves. That’s not only among many women themselves,  who may miss the signs or attribute them to something else but also among healthcare providers as well.

Will it take more female CEOs to shift to a menopause-friendly workplace, or will it make CEOs speak up about the silent yet not-so-unknown moment in a woman’s life, known as menopause?

How to talk about menopause at work

While these personal stories inspire and help remove the cloak of secrecy, some women+ still don’t feel comfortable talking about it.

After all, who wants to talk about heavy bleeding, loss of libido, forgetfulness, hot flashes, or vaginal dryness at work?

At Network Rail, they took the personal out of it. They took a broad approach to education.

Janet Trowse said in a Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIBD) podcast, “We started by structuring up terms of reference, going bog standard, so we treated it as a proper project and not as a personal campaign. I think with a subject area such as menopause, it’s imperative not to make it too personal, so if you’re engaging the finance directors or very senior people, it’s being able to talk about it in a people context but importantly in a business context.”

Z. Colette Edwards, Founder and Chief Medical Officer of pausitive health, spoke with HITLAB about transforming the health ecosystem, including for menopause, during a Digital Health Symposium. 

Menopause and the media

The next issue – is menopause in the media. So often, it’s young, thin, laughing women with (airbrushed) perfect skin gracing magazine covers rather than women who are aging vibrantly with strong bodies, a joyous spirit, and the wisdom that comes with the passage of time.

People like Michelle Obama are giving a voice to voiceless women by sharing her experience with menopause.

Menopause is also making headlines, even in the U.S., and the celebrations of successful women in their 50’s.

Channel 4, a television station in the U.K., launched the U.K. media industry’s first menopause policy in 2019. Like other policies, it provides support and guidance for managers.

Thirty-one brands signed an open letter with GenM, a menopause partner for brands, urging businesses to use their platforms to talk about menopause and normalize these conversations.

Titled “Dear brands & organizations, we need to talk,” it went on to say there are 48 reasons to talk, referencing the 48 symptoms of menopause. While some companies put a number on the number of menopause symptoms, they vary from woman to woman. 

The open letter also requests businesses review their policies, products, and services and find ways to improve a woman’s menopause experience.

Employer menopause resources

In the U.K., trained leaders, healthcare professionals, and others are joining forces to create menopause-friendly workplaces with an independent Menopause Friendly Accreditation.

Accredited menopause-friendly employers include HSBC UK, M&S Bank, Atos, Aster Group, and first direct. Over 100 employers have committed to being menopause friendly.

The accreditation focuses on employers who focus on diversity, inclusion, and well-being.

Interestingly, these three categories were selected.  An increasing number of employers are already considering these areas when designing workplace policies and benefits. Yet, menopause is far too often left out of the conversation, even though it represents an area of intersection between diversity, inclusion, equity, and well-being.

The Menopause Information Packet for Organizations (MIPO) is a toolkit for employers to get started. The free resources are informed by internationally recognized research and include existing policies, strategic decision checklists, guides for managers, and more.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) is a U.K. charity that promotes the well-being of people at work. They have several printable resources, including posters on the dos and don’ts of discussing menopause at work.

If you’d like to draft a menopause-friendly policy, the Victoria Women’s Trust has a menstrual policy template, which Future Super used to write the one for their company.

The European Menopause and Andropause Society (EMAS) has a menopause at work webinar series that discusses what employers and managers need to know and a self-assessment tool for employers and managers.

It’s time for “menopause-friendly” workplaces to be as common as the maternity benefits that are now mainstream and expected. These companies and countries have taken the plunge to recognize and address the unmet needs of women experiencing the menopause journey. They recognize it’s both the right thing to do and the business-savvy action to take.