Professor Margaret Rees
Executive Director, European Menopause and Andropause Society
Rachel Weiss
Founder, Menopause Café Charity
Workplaces should support women through menopause to retain and develop talent. Guidelines and initiatives can encourage inclusive workplaces and improve employee wellbeing.
Menopause poses challenges in the workplace, but with support, employers can attract, retain and develop their female workforce. Nearly 1 billion women are aged 40–59, and around 50% contribute to the labour force.1
Menopause impacts work and income
Menopause affects women in different ways. Each experience is affected by the severity of symptoms, the workplace environment and culture. Hot flushes, insomnia, tiredness, poor concentration and memory can affect the ability to work.
Women may reduce working hours or leave employment. This has an immediate effect on income and a long-term effect on finances. Gender pay and pension gaps are worsened. Women are passed over for promotion and leadership roles, even in female-dominant workforces. Employers lose experienced staff.
Workplaces should create an open, inclusive and supportive culture regarding menopause.
Promoting menopause understanding and support
The European Menopause and Andropause Society (EMAS) provides position statements, clinical guides, short fact sheets, webinars and podcasts. They aim to help women, healthcare and non-healthcare professionals understand menopausal health as a gender and age equality issue.
In 2021, EMAS published global consensus recommendations on workplace menopause for employers, managers, healthcare professionals and women. Workplaces should consider the impact of menopause on all occupations, work locations and work patterns. Workplaces should create an open, inclusive and supportive culture regarding menopause.
Women should not be discriminated against, marginalised or dismissed because of menopausal symptoms. All healthcare professionals should recognise that menopausal symptoms can negatively affect the ability to work. They should receive menopausal health training and advise women using national and international guidelines.
How Menopause Cafés can help
Some people sail through their menopause with increased confidence, free from monthly physical disruptions, but many suffer and benefit from reasonable adjustments. Fortunately, guidance is available for workplaces worldwide. Legislation and guidance must be matched by reducing the taboos that still inhibit workers.
To encourage open discussions about menopause, employers can host Menopause Cafés and promote the Menopause Awareness Ribbon. Menopause Cafés are pop-up discussion groups open to all ages and genders, where staff can learn from colleagues’ experiences in an informal setting. They help reduce fear and prejudice.
Many workplaces are learning to value their older, experienced employees. However, over-emphasising the downsides of menopause risks discriminating against older women. We must combat this with open discussions, making menopause part of everyday conversation.
Reference
[1] Statistics Times (2024). World sex ratio 2024.
