EHRC’s menopause guidance highlights business case for supporting women

As we reported last week, the Equality and Human Rights Commission has published new workplace guidance to help employers understand their legal obligations in relation to supporting workers experiencing menopausal symptoms. It is designed to remind employers of the legal framework and provides practical tips on making reasonable adjustments and fostering positive conversations about menopause. The legal angle, including the health and safety angle, are issues we have covered in the past fortnight and those programmes are available for viewing now from the Out-Law website. 

Aside from the legal obligations, the guidance highlights the wider point around the business case for supporting employees with menopause symptoms. The Commission emphasises the importance of helping menopausal women improve their productivity, as well helping attract and retain this valuable talent pool, bearing in mind these women typically represent a highly skilled and experienced section of the workforce. 

The Commission’s guidance refers to research by the CIPD published in October last year exploring employees’ experiences of menopause at work and the range of adjustments and support that can be most helpful. They found that two thirds (67%) of working women between the ages of 40 and 60 with experience of menopausal symptoms said they have had a mostly negative impact on them at work. Of those who were negatively affected at work: 79% said they were less able to concentrate; 68% said they experienced more stress; nearly half (49%) said they felt less patient with clients and colleagues, and 46% felt less physically able to carry out work tasks. As a result of this, over half of respondents were able to think of a time when they were unable to go into work due to their menopause symptoms. Further research by the Fawcett Society found that one in ten women surveyed who were employed during the menopause left work due to menopause symptoms.

So, let’s consider that. Trish Embley is Head of Client Training and she has been helping a number of clients tackle this issue and earlier Trish joined me by video-link to discuss this. I put it to Trish that the issue goes wider than the gender specific problem of the menopause:

Trish Embley: “It does, it does, because one in three of us in the workplace are over 50. That’s a trend that's been increasing and will continue to increase over the decades and without making stereotypical assumptions, the chances of there being some health condition does increase and we know that the reason why people don't stay on, or do leave the workforce before retirement age, the primary reason, is failing health. Therefore it benefits both the individual who may need to keep in employment, and the employer who wants to retain that wealth of experience and knowledge and mitigate the existing skills gap. It benefits both, to pre-empt this and look at ways that health can be supported as people age, and to look at those initiatives and, again, to brief managers on ways that they can help people remain high performers whilst they are within the organisation.”

Joe Glavina: “Are we talking here about older workers leaving for any reason, not just for reasons to do with the menopause?” 

Trish Embley: “Yes, absolutely, it could be any reason and it's just, I think, employers being mindful of that. Studies that have been done show that across all genders there can be issues, particularly sleep deprivation. We talked about with the menopause, this sometimes being a difficult topic to talk about. In a study that was done by the Edinburgh University Business School on supporting healthy ageing at work they talked about the significant impact a lack of sleep can have on people's performance of work and sometimes this can be caused for all sorts of reasons, you know, stress as people get older, frequent visits to the bathroom in the middle of the night, again, topics that people might not feel comfortable discussing with their manager unless the manager creates that environment where we can have these open conversations and there's no shame or stigma.”

Joe Glavina: “So, finally Trish, are there any action points for employers?”

Trish Embley: “I do think the main action point is, let's start talking about this, let's get rid of the elephant in the room, let's get rid of the shame, let's get rid of the embarrassment. For some people, that's a harder sell than others and, therefore, I think what good employers do is they have on their websites, on their portals, a self-service system. So for those that do want to keep this more private, they can look at the Employee Assistance Programmes, they can look at the links, they can look at the various forms of support that are available without them even having to speak to anyone. I think networks are great as well. We have something here at Pinsent Masons called The Fan Club. That’s for anyone experiencing menopause but, again, you're not alone and it's something that we encourage talking about, and anyone can join The Fan Club if they just want to know more about menopausal symptoms. So, I think it's those sorts of more progressive, preventative, initiatives that I'd like to see employers embrace.”

The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s guidance on Menopause in the Workplace was published on 22 February. We have included a link to it in the transcript of this programme.

LINKS
- Link to EHRC’s guidance on menopause in the workplace