Kate Usher: IT’S AUTUMN AND TIME TO TALK MENOPAUSE

The autumn is a busy time for menopause as September is Peri-Menopause Awareness Month and Friday 18^th October is World Menopause Day.

There is always a flurry of demand for awareness sessions and keynote speeches at this time, but once this is done what happens next? What happens on the ‘days’ where it is not front of mind?

It is easy to assume once the ubiquitous ‘lunch and learn’ is over, all those who need to know, know and an organisation’s accountability towards its employees is fulfilled. Box ticked until next year.

Yet evidence is growing that we haven’t just plateaued when it comes to creating menopause enabled places of work, we are in fact going backwards.

Deloitte’s Women @ Work 2024 report, released earlier this year highlighted that for menopause, the situation is worsening, not improving.

Nearly half (44%) of those who were struggling with their symptoms ‘suffered in silence’ because they feared there would be a negative impact on their career. This is reinforced by the fact less than 2 in 10 said that they were supported by their managers when they had disclosed that they were taking time off due to menopause.

This causes many to question whether they can continue in their careers, with nearly 2 in 10 (17%)[1] considering leaving the workforce often downgrading their careers in order to manage menopause symptoms. Sadly 1 in 10[2] do leave.

These figures are damning, particularly when 1 in 10[3] of the whole UK workforce – men and women – are menopausal. We are effectively haemorrhaging talent from our workforce while losing 14 million[4] working days in productivity, at a cost of £1.88bn[5] per year.

No organisation can sustain this level of impact.

So, what are the three easy steps every employer can and should take to support women and those going through menopause:

1. Focus on everyone

All too frequently menopause is seen as something which only affects a small percentage of employees, women and more specifically older women.

Most will experience menopause in their 40s, when they are at their most valuable to their employer. Losing talented employees at this phase in their career is extremely costly, both for their contribution and the cost of recruitment and training. 

But the biggest issue in only focusing on those who are experiencing symptoms, is that this approach won’t change the way this life phase is perceived and the treatment of those people by everyone else within that organisation. An holistic approach is necessary.

Whether we are menopausal or not, we are all interacting vicariously with menopause on a day-to-day basis as colleagues, partners, family members and friends. The way we talk about and behave around this life phase is a key pillar in the retention and recruitment of women. We are all involved.

2. Train managers

Managers are the nodal point for culture in every organisation. They role model behaviours for their team, defining not just what’s acceptable and what’s not, but what’s considered positive, supportive and inclusive and what isn’t. Team members are responding to their cues, overt or subliminal.

Poor management awareness and training sits at the heart of the Deloitte statistics previously mentioned and many of the cases that have been brought to tribunal in the UK.

Manager training should be a primary concern for any organisation that wishes to not only be an employer of choice, but one that is recognised as a place where women are supported to succeed.

It is important to note training is not static and needs to part of both current and future programmes. It creates the opportunity for consistent change, it also reinforces that menopause is a subject for everyone and not just a subset of the workforce.

3. Create and maintain effective policies and guidelines

There is a body of thought that states policies are simply a snapshot of expectations which then quickly change. Because menopause has no specific legal requirement it can easily be moved into the pile to be dealt with at some point in the future, unlike pregnancy which an organisation wouldn’t even consider bypassing.

Policies and their associated guidelines create a framework of expected behaviours for employees. Without them an employer is accepting the ‘wild west’ approach.

Unfortunately, this opens the door to losing talent and legal action. Both carry a high financial and reputational price tag. Creating these policies and guidelines is relatively easy. But by listening to your people and amending them as needed, this is where the opportunity for improvement lies.

The impact of these three steps is felt most, when they are created and developed together. Organisations are not static, neither is the industry they work in or the people who work for them.

This cannot be a one stop shop, awareness needs to include new starters, no matter how senior and training needs to be offered to those who are newly promoted or recruited as well.

Menopause enabled workplaces include and benefit all those who work and pass through them. There is no downside.

References

[1] https://www.cipd.org/uk/knowledge/reports/menopause-workplace-experiences/

[2] Fawcett Society

[3] TUC

[4] https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5803/cmselect/cmwomeq/91/report.html

[5] https://peppy.health/blogs/hidden-costs-of-menopause/#:~:text=Symptoms%20of%20menopause%20include%E2%80%A6&text=The%20cost%20of%20%C2%A31.88,hours%20a%20week%20alleviating%20symptoms.