Almost a fifth (18%) of women said their workplace has a menopause policy in place, according to research by women’s wellness specialist Serenova.
Its survey of 1,000 UK women also found that half (50%) of women said they feel supported while experiencing the menopause at work, with 37% admitting that their employer does not provide any menopause support provisions at all. Just 44% of women said they feel comfortable talking about the menopause at work.
Women in healthcare and social services feel the most supported with menopause symptoms (57%), followed by those in public services, law and security (53%), education and non-profit (52%), and business finance and professional services (48%). Women working in retail feel the least supported at work, at 44%.
Of the respondents who work in healthcare and social services, 36% said their employer does not provide any support provisions, while 22% said they had a menopause policy. Just 16% said their employer provided counselling support.
In retail, 15% of respondents said their place of work had a menopause policy, 10% has menopause leave and 8% provided counselling. This is higher than respondents in healthcare and social services, where just 7% said their employer offered menopause leave.
London-based respondents reported feeling the most acknowledged when experiencing menopause, with 59% agreeing that they feel somewhat or very supported, which is 9% higher than the overall national total. This was followed by the South East (55%), while Yorkshire and the Humber ranked the lowest (45%).
Elle Sheppard, global head of marketing and communications at Serenova, said: “Mid-life women have so many pressures to face, the last thing they need is to feel like they have to suffer in silence at work, or worse, get forced into leaving a career they love due to a lack of support. Going through the menopause, including the peri and post stages, can last for years. It’s a long period of lacking confidence, feeling exhausted and putting up with physical pain too.”
