Mostly appearing between ages of 45 and 55 but occasionally in people under age 30, menopause is a natural process that everybody assigned female at birth is expected to go through in their lifetime. However, it’s still widely misunderstood and often depicted in the media as just hot flashes and mood swings when, for many people, it’s a lot more and impacts every area of life – especially in the workplace.
However, there are actually 62 possible symptoms of menopause and considering that menopause can last anywhere between seven and 14 years, this is quite the burden to bear and outlines that not only does the condition impact every area of life, there needs to be much better comprehension of how it can manifest and affect people’s lives.
How menopause affects people in the workplace
According to the largest ever study on menopause, almost a fifth of British workers, over a fifth of workers are working whilst going through the menopause and two thirds of those admit that getting through the workday can be difficult due to the symptoms of the condition, these symptoms including fatigue and a loss of concentration.
This perhaps isn’t helped by the taboos that menopausal people still experience – 50% of respondents said that they still think this is a taboo subject and 51% explaining that they felt embarrassed by it.
Our understanding of menopause has so far to go if we’re going to support people through what can be a life-changing process. 77% of respondents didn’t ask for any adjustments to be made in the workplace even though they are entitled to and this is particularly jarring when 51% of respondents agree that those going through the menopause should be given time off to manage and recover from their symptoms.
How to support employees through the menopause
ACAS have a wealth of advice on incorporating menopause support and awareness in the workplace including having a menopause or wellbeing champion at work could help people affected by the menopause.
The champion could be a point of contact if staff need advice, or someone to initially talk to if they are not comfortable talking to their managers.
With support from the champion, employers, HR and managers could:
- Run workshops in the organisation to raise awareness among staff
- Let all staff know that the employer will try to support those having difficulties because of symptoms, for example through posters or newsletters
- Check that health and safety risk assessments cover the different stages of the menopause
- Set up a support network for staff affected by the menopause
- Tell staff where they can find more information