How to support menstruating employees
How to support menstruating employees
A new survey has revealed that three in five women conceal that period pain is the reason for taking sick leave because they fear it will make them seem unprofessional. How should you tackle the stigma and support staff?
Survey results
The 2025 "Workplace Health Gap" survey by Superdrug Online Doctor also revealed that nearly two in five women work through extreme period pain without telling their employer, and nearly a quarter are reconsidering their job due to a lack of support for their mental health.
The law
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 requires you to ensure the health, safety and welfare of all your workers, and this includes those affected by adverse menstrual symptoms.
The Equality Act 2010 prohibits discrimination on the grounds of certain protected characteristics, including disability and sex. Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and period pain are not, of themselves, protected characteristics. However, if you don't adequately support employees when they are being affected by adverse menstrual symptoms, there's a risk they could bring: (1) a disability discrimination claim, for your failure to make reasonable adjustments, if their condition is severe enough to amount to a disability; and/or (2) a sex discrimination claim if they're been treated less favourably than a man.
Practical support
Start by putting in place a menstruation policy to raise wider awareness about what menstruation is and what the adverse symptoms of it can be. Your policy should also provide practical workplace adjustments and solutions which will help to create a supportive and more comfortable working environment for those adversely affected by menstrual symptoms. Other practical steps you can then take include:
* Eliminating the stigma by treating menstruation as part of general health and wellbeing, so that employees aren't embarrassed or afraid to speak up if they are struggling at work because of their symptoms.
* Training managers (both male and female) on how to have open and sensitive discussions with staff about their symptoms and any additional support and adjustments they may need.
* Recording menstruation-related sick leave as an ongoing medical issue rather than as a series of short-term sickness absences.
* Being flexible when applying any attendance, disciplinary or capability procedure
* Being accommodating to ad hoc homeworking and other short-term flexible working options on painful period days - this may also help to reduce menstruation-related sick leave.
* Enabling regular toilet and rest breaks.
* Providing free sanitary products in workplace toilets (subject to cost constraints).
Do bear in mind that there's no uniform experience of menstruation as not all women who have periods get PMS or period pain. The range, severity and length of symptoms can also vary from person to person and from month to month.
Tip. Always treat an employee's menstrual information as confidential.
Tip. You don't need to offer a separate right to paid menstrual leave.
Put in place a menstruation policy to raise awareness and help create a supportive work environment. This should include adjustments that you may be willing to implement to assist those suffering from severe menstrual symptoms. Also train managers to have open conversations with staff about their periods and adverse symptoms.