Do you think that we should get menstrual leave?

[Sarahpaula]

I have had such a terrible period this month. I was in so much pain. I feel so weak and tired. I know that many women feel like this. Do you think we should have an entitlement to menstrual leave from work?

Some countries already have menstrual leave in place. Mainly in Asia, from what I can see.

Here is an article:

in Taiwan, menstrual leave legislation was amended as recently as 2013. It guarantees women three days of menstrual leave a year on top of the 30 days half-paid sick leave given to all workers.
The extra three days came after a coalition of politicians claimed that incorporating menstrual leave into regular sick leave would be a violation of women’s rights. Indonesian women, too, are allowed two days a month menstrual leave and South Korean workers AND students are entitled to take days off when they’ve got their period as sick leave.

I don't think we should have menstrual leave, why should a women who has a few days of light bleeding and no pain get a nice day off each month when someone with endometriosis has to still take additional sick days to manage their condition.

What would be better is for GPs to take menstrual problems seriously so that women can get a proper diagnosis, then have conditions such as endometriosis recognised and protected as a disability (I believe there is some limited precedence for this) so that they can not be sacked under sickness policies for recurring sickness.

@Cyw2018 you would have the option whether you want to take it or not

Are you bored with the gender pay gap and pregnancy discrimination and looking for a new obstacle to put in women’s way?

Not sure if "menstrual leave" would work, but flexible working for sure.

I'm fortunate that I'm allowed to WFH when things are bad. Just being able to work from the sofa in my PJs with a hot water bottle makes such a difference. My Manager is very understanding thank GOD.

@AuntyPasta no

I think it would make it even less likely that women were recruited or promoted over men.
If you feel too unwell to work then you call in sick. If it's an on going thing then you get medical help.

@AramintaLee I am very happy to hear that. I am glad you get to work in a place that is comfortable for you

Definitely not, it will be another reason to not employ women of childbearing age and will put us on a weaker footing than the males. We will never be seen as equals if we do this.
If you are gushing for 3 days it sounds really severe and at the end of the spectrum. The only time I’ve ever ‘gushed’ is after childbirth.

I wish workplaces were more period friendly. I think more than leave, we need the option to work flexibly or change our work patterns if necessary.

I worked very long shifts with expensive equipment (in a very male dominated field). I really struggled to concentrate when I had pmt. I wish I could have asked my bosses to avoid giving me the longest shifts on my period days, or for a regular shift pattern so I could plan my periods accordingly. But it is such a taboo in our society.

Something like the right to request flexible working when caring for young children. We should have the right to request flexible working practices if menstruation affects our productivity.

SerenDippitty

I don't get what your are saying. Once pregnant the rules apply for leave. I very much doubt there is any difference TBH. So I am not sure what you are alluding to.

I have bad cramps and flood every time I move/cough/sneeze. Suspect I have endo as my bowels are affected too with severe pain. Saw the GP who said mirena was the only option, probably endo but nothing they could do
I just don't have the energy to push for more when I'm already fighting a thyroid issue

Of course periods are painful, but periods that prevent normal activity merit seeing a doctor. Many women however don't, because the idea that periods mean one should be curled up into a ball for days is so normalised.

If it is so bad as to miss work regularly, surely you see a gynaecologist?

And if your GP won't refer you? I spent years as a teenager going to my GP about period pains that some months were so bad I couldn't walk. They did nothing but give me different painkillers to try. Wouldn't let me try the pill either but did suggest trying a small account of alcohol. Finally did go on the pill for contraception and it helped so much with the pain. When I came off it ten years later the pain seemed to have sorted itself out.

At the other end now, peri-menopause. Pain, flooding etc. Had no problems getting the Mirena, which has helped a lot. But my current GP is very good.

Op you shouldn’t be gushing blood and in so much pain and weak. This is not normal, no matter how much you dispute it.

You need to see your doctor again if it’s that bad. Something is wrong.

I’m sorry you’re having these issues, but the majority of women are not gushing blood in so much pain that otc medication doesn’t make it manageable and weak with it too.

And I say that as someone who is peri menopausal experienced flooding. What you describe is not normal for the majority of women,

Speak to your doctor again, and if you need to use sick leave then do so.

However most women as you can see from the responses will not support women having menstrual leave days.

No, although some months I get really bad cramps on the first day or when I have a bad clot (writhing around unable to think straight - I say this having given birth twice with no pain relief...). They usually go away within half a day and it's far more comfortable if I can be at home sipping hot water instead of hiding in the work loo sobbing wondering how to get home...

I would prefer things like this to be covered under a scheme.

So where you have companies that track absence and so many in a certain time gets meeting etc I would prefer to see protests ruin when it's menstrual against companies being able to take action against you.

It is a Man's World. Women have to fight for this and that, and are probably exhausted now. Men do not care, nor do they have the period or meno issues.

Debate that.

I don't see why inequality for men/women who don't have periods should be an issue. Women get maternity leave because it's acknowledgement of our anatomy that we carry babies, and you get illness discounted at work in acknowledgement that pregnancy can effect woman.

Fair doesn't always mean equal. I knew someone with endometriosis who suffered awfully at work. But her colleagues always seemed to be dismissive of it and there was an air of them thinking she was taking the piss.

In reality most employees use benefits such as these when they have genuine need. And creating menstrual leave would normalize and make people understand that some people really and severely suffer with their periods. It's not about other people who aren't affected by them.

I really think you are doing women a disservice here. 'Just having a period is hard work and tiring'. I'm very aware of some of the awful, painful experiences of some women but to claim that periods are tiring and hard work for women makes us sound feeble and pathetic. Painful periods should be treated the same as any other medical condition. Otherwise, where does it end? Will there be IBS leave for sufferers? Asthma leave during the winter months? You seem to have conveniently ignored the points about it being yet another barrier to women in the workplace.

I checked. It is the bradford index where small frequent absenses are said to be worse for productivity and hr departments set a level. It seems very anti female when you think on it.

Also my employer as I'm sure others are started to have campaign to bring awareness about menopause and make adjustments for women going through it. So why not menstruation too?

If you’d asked before my coil I would have agreed with you, my pain was so bad I’d have taken an epidural for it and flooding too.
I had a coil fitted and after a few months to settle in it changed my life, although I do realise they aren’t for everyone.

Making men more employable? No thanks! I say this as a peri-menopausal woman with debilitating periods so bad that I experience incredible pain, weakness & flooding for 10 days out of every 24 and have to plan my life around them (awaiting a hysterectomy).

If you make women less financially viable to a business whose main aim is profitability & introduce a law that allows them additional time off for which you have to pay them directly from that profit, why would any business owner choose them? That would be particularly true for low paid, unskilled jobs, putting women at an even further disadvantage than they already are! Particularly women of childbearing age who, wrongly are already seen as a risk due to the potential cost of maternity pay if they have children whilst employed by that company. The fight for equality is hard enough without adding something that puts us at a disadvantage.

Jeez, who’s going to employ women of child bearing age if they’re going to take 3 days off a month?! Madness. Plus how would it be policed?

As for free sanitary products, I’d only support that for reusable ones, if at all. Not for yet more tampons and towels ending up in landfill.

@QueenPaws

I have bad cramps and flood every time I move/cough/sneeze. Suspect I have endo as my bowels are affected too with severe pain. Saw the GP who said mirena was the only option, probably endo but nothing they could do I just don't have the energy to push for more when I'm already fighting a thyroid issue

This was me. For 9 weeks!

Mirena has so far been successful for me. I would recommend a try.

But thyroid problems themselves can cause issue with periods.