Published yesterday morning, in its Fourth Special Report – Menopause and the workplace: Government Response to the Committee’s First Report of Session 2022–2023, ministers have rejected a proposal from the Women and Equalities Committee to introduce ‘Menopause Leave’ pilots to support those going through the menopause.
The Women and Equalities Committee, who were behind the proposals, have slammed the decision, saying that “government progress has been glacial and its response complacent.”
HRreview has gathered expert insights on what impact this will have on HR.
Employers will still have a duty
Kate Palmer, HR Advice & Consultancy Director at Peninsula, warns that despite the outcome, employers still have a duty to support their employers going through menopause:
“A survey conducted by British Menopause Society found that almost one in two women (45%) felt their menopause symptoms had a negative impact on their work.
“Given that the menopause will impact approximately half of the population at some point in their lives, the majority of whom will be of working age, the decision to bench these proposals may seem a step backwards in the fight for gender equality.
“However, this doesn’t mean that employers can ignore menopause. Whilst it won’t be a standalone protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010, employers should remember that affected employees are still covered under existing characteristics.
The lack of protection from discrimination
“The decision not to create new rights to protect female workers from discrimination or harassment relating to menopause is disappointing. There is a clear business case for investing in retaining menopausal employees, and adjusting the Equality Act to make menopause a protected characteristic would have improved conditions for the estimated one million women considering leaving their job due to a lack of support in this area. The rejection of the proposal to pilot menopause leave in England will also be seen as a missed opportunity to develop learnings on how organisations can best support female workers,” says Nick Campbell, Head of Employment at law firm Brabners.
“While we welcome the additional guidance being provided to employers as a result of the review, organisations and their employees would benefit from menopause being a protected characteristic in its own right, similar to pregnancy and maternity. Instead, disputes will continue to play out using the existing protections of age, sex and/or disability, which inadequately cover the complexities around reproductive health.”
Is menopause leave the answer, though?
Kathy Abernethy, Chief Nursing Officer and Director of Menopause Services, Peppy said: “While we welcome this focus on menopause as a workplace issue: approval of sick leave just isn’t the answer here. While it’s true many individuals do take time off work due to menopausal symptoms, what colleagues really need is easy access to information and appropriate treatment to effectively manage those symptoms.
“Many workplaces can and do offer great support, which is very important, but access to treatment – whether that is HRT, lifestyle changes, nutritional support or therapy approaches (or often all of these) – is essential, and workplaces who support their people to make informed decisions around treatment choices, may find that absence is far less common.”
Louise Skinner, employment partner, global law firm, Morgan Lewis:
“The Government published its response to the Women & Equalities Committee’s report on Menopause and the workplace today. With women aged over 50 the fastest growing demographic in the UK workforce, it is widely recognised that steps should be taken to improve the experience of those experiencing menopause at work in order to retain this valuable talent. In what the Committee calls “a missed opportunity”, the Government has rejected five of their recommendations, including that there should be consultation on making menopause a protected characteristic, and that section 14 of the Equality Act 2010 should be enacted to allow discrimination claims to proceed based on two protected characteristics combined.
“The Government does not currently intend to produce model menopause policies to assist employers in supporting menopausal employees, although does emphasise its aim that employers and workplace colleagues should be educated and informed about symptoms of menopause and how they can support women at work. Notwithstanding the Government’s decision to instigate little formal change at this time, there is much that can be done to improve the experience of menopausal employees and retain this important demographic in the workplace. Employers should consider taking proactive steps to create an inclusive, supportive environment for menopausal employees which could include implementing policies, appointing menopause champions, providing training and information for employees and line managers, and sign-posting employees to appropriate occupational health services.”
Amelia Brand is the Editor for HRreview, and host of the HR in Review podcast series. With a Master’s degree in Legal and Political Theory, her particular interests within HR include employment law, DE&I, and wellbeing within the workplace. Prior to working with HRreview, Amelia was Sub-Editor of a magazine, and Editor of the Environmental Justice Project at University College London, writing and overseeing articles into UCL’s weekly newsletter. Her previous academic work has focused on philosophy, politics and law, with a special focus on how artificial intelligence will feature in the future.