Menopause and specifically menopause support in the workplace hit the headlines again with the news of government’s lack of support for those working through menopause and people are furious. Some of the comments I’ve read include:

“Another nail in the coffin for how our government perceives the economic and social value of women.”

“It feels like a kick in the stomach for women’s rights and gender equality.”

“It felt like a slap in the face, a painful one!”

Essentially what’s happened is that the UK government has announced it is unwilling to legislate to support people working through menopause and has:

  1. Rejected a proposal to introduce menopause leave pilots in England arguing it could be counterproductive.
  2. Dismissed a recommendation to make menopause a protected characteristic under the Equality Act as it could be discriminatory towards men!

My view is that this changes nothing. Companies committed to promoting an inclusive environment where everyone feels valued and supported will continue to provide training, support and accessible resources, not because of legislation but because it’s the right thing to do.

Plus, the business benefits for providing menopause support in the workplace are huge and include:

  • Reducing business costs such as replacing the loss of talented, experienced employees. For example, did you know 10% of people leave the workplace due to lack of menopause support, rising to 20% amongst the disabled community, which means that organisations are losing talent, knowledge and expertise regularly for the sake of making simple adjustments.
  • Attracting top new talent and maintaining competitive advantage – an HR professional recently shared with me that graduate recruits are asking about menopause policies – not because they need it as yet but because it can be a good indicator of how well an employer genuinely cares about wellbeing at work.

Menopause is here to stay as are the millions of key workers impacted directly or indirectly.

So, whilst the government may be oblivious to the benefits of supporting people impacted by menopause at work, organisations like yours should remain committed to driving positive change and inclusivity.

My diary is open for Q2 bookings – email julie@juliedennis.net to arrange a free consultation to chat directly with me about how my proven strategies will help your organisation establish a first class inclusive menopause programme that attracts talented people of all ages.