Part 2 of 2: Britain Is Pioneering the ‘Menopause-Friendly’ Workplace!

7 min read

Hi everyone, I’m Rick Barron, your host, and welcome to my podcast, That’s Life, I Swear

There’s a movement happening to make workplaces ‘Menopause Friendly.’ A best practice for women in the work environment. That’s right, you heard me. Various companies in the U.S. are now, or should I say, finally; adopting such practices due to getting guidance from across the pond, as they say. Yes, the British are coming.

Let’s jump into this 

Last week I shared with you information related to menopause being a taboo topic in the workplace. A survey conducted by the Mayo Clinic, provided information covering the various issues working women have to cope with due to menopause. Let’s say the survey painted a very unsatisfying picture of the inequities women face in the workplace.

Menopause Badge. Courtesy of: The Menopause Friendly Accreditation

What is a menopause-friendly workplace? Our friends from The Menopause Friendly Accreditation in the U.K. provide this definition: It means being clear how you support menopause in your workplace, creating an environment where menopause can be discussed easily and putting the proper support in place for colleagues. End definition.

The British are coming

As said from the outset, there’s a new movement coming to the United States, and that’s to create “menopause-friendly workplaces.” For that, we thank our friends across the pond in jolly old England. As is happening in our country, so it is in Britain already, where menopausal women are believed to be the fastest-growing work force demographic.

U.K. is walking the talk. Over 50 British organizations, including HSBC UK, Unilever UK, and the soccer club West Ham United, are now certified as “menopause-friendly” through an accreditation developed by Henpicked: Menopause in the Workplace, a British professional training firm. One recent poll estimated that three in 10 workplaces in Britain now have some kind of menopause policy in place. There is even an awards ceremony, held in London, for the most menopause-friendly companies.

The British Parliament, which held multiple hearings on menopause in the workplace over the last two years, is calling for such policies — which include training about symptoms, physical accommodations like something as simple as desk fans and modified uniforms, and more flexible schedules.

Some U.K. companies are making changes in their U.S. operations. For example, BAE Systems, which by the way became an accredited Menopause Friendly Employer in 2022,  now offers work accommodations for menopause-related needs and has made changes to its U.S. health plans to offer medical treatments, mental well-being support, and more.

Achieving Top Employer Certification is not an easy task. The Top Employers Institute assesses participating organizations via a rigorous analysis of their HR practices.

The HR Best Practices Survey, covers six HR domains consisting of 20 topics across the business and employee lifecycle, including People Strategy, Work Environment, Talent Acquisition, Learning, Well-being and Diversity & Inclusion. The information is then validated and audited independently to ensure the integrity of the processes and data. Just love are the Brits are so meticulous. 

Why does this matter?

Female celebrities such as Oprah and Michelle Obama are jumping into the cultural conversation. Gen X-ers, now in their 40s and 50s, are more willing to talk about their menopause experiences and request support than previous generations. 

New York City Mayor Eric Adams promised earlier this year "to change the stigma around menopause” and “create more menopause-friendly workplaces. That said, he is championing more menopause-friendly workplaces for city workers through improving policies and the workplace environment.

A growing number of what is called “fem-tech” companies are focused on women’s health in everything from prescribing hormones to selling menopause-themed energy bars.

Femtech: A term that refers to diagnostic tools, products, services, wearables and software that use technology to address women's health issues. 
Courtesy of: Shutterstock

Definition
Femtech is a term that refers to diagnostic tools, products, services, wearables, and software that use technology to address women's health issues, including menstrual health, reproductive health, sexual health, maternal health, and menopause. Welcome to the future.

What is most important to call out here is that employers realize that offering help is a way to retain experienced women in the workforce. There are more women in the workforce today than ever before. Sorry guys, the handwriting is on the wall, so get with the program.  More evidence shows menopause symptoms are hurting productivity and causing women to leave or consider leaving their jobs. It’s high time to address menopause it in a humanitarian manner. 

Women’s health concerns, such as fertility struggles and postpartum depression, have been acknowledged as issues that employers are addressing. However, the big topic that’s taboo in the workplace is discussing the symptoms of menopause and perimenopause, the years-long stretch that precedes the end of a woman’s reproductive years.

Denise Rosa, Nvida’s Benefits Manager and head of U.S. medical programs called out that, many female employees were asking where they can go to deal with menopause. The company provides benefits covering fertility support, egg freezing, and adoption. Great, but we need and want menopause to the list.

Why the shift in the earth?

As mentioned earlier, U.S. employers are realizing that offering help is a way to retain experienced women in the work force, as more evidence shows that menopause symptoms are hurting productivity and causing women to leave or consider leaving their jobs.

Menopause Infographic. Courtesy of Cigna

Data points

1.     A recent British study, for example, found that one-third of women ages 50 to 64 reported moderate to severe difficulties coping at work because of menopausal symptoms. 

2.     A 2021 survey by the Mayo Clinic estimated that about 10 percent of women ages 45 to 60 had taken time off in the last year in the United States because of menopause symptoms, costing employers about $1.8 billion.

Educating the male psyche 

Where the rubber needs to hit the road is educating corporations but, more to the point, the male psyche. 

Deborah Garlick, the founder of Henpicked. Courtesy of Nature's Best

Deborah Garlick, the founder of Henpicked, stated that ‘the first step to a menopause-friendly workplace is providing education about menopause to help lessen the stigma’.

Many men, for example, don’t know that symptoms of perimenopause can start as early as a woman’s 30s, and that even minor adjustments like allowing an employee to take a short break when symptoms flare, can help. Because of the lack of education about menopause, many women don’t even know that what’s bothering them is related to hormonal change.

So, what can company workplaces do to achieve a more ‘menopause-friendly workplace’ where men will be more sensitized to their female counterparts? Some suggestions:

1.     Posting information on company websites and training employees and managers, regardless of gender.

2.     Deborah Garlick suggests appointing “menopause champions,” employees wanting to talk about menopause and help women find support. 

3.     Garlick recommends recruiting those high in the ranks. Why? This telegraphs to the female worker that if senior managers want to get involved, this softens the hesitation for women wanting to talk about menopause. 

4.     Workplaces can also provide employees with access to treatment. Many U.S. companies are beginning to contract with companies that offer virtual appointments with providers trained in menopause care, such as Maven and Midday in the United States and Henpicked, WellBeing of Women and Peppy Health, all British companies.

In Britain, some workplaces are offering women desk fans. In some cases women having a terrible time can ask to change shifts or work from home until they get their symptoms under control. Check out the Henpicked checklist showing other ideas.

There are an estimated 34 symptoms of the menopause transition, and often, symptoms hit just as women are rising to higher levels at work, adding an additional challenge to the hurdles of ageism and sexism already present in many workplaces.

Ms. Garlick said that things in Britain in 2016 were much the same as they are in the United States work environments today, with women generally reluctant to draw attention to their age and menopause status.

“I would have people saying, ‘I don’t know why we are talking about this,’” she said, recalling particular resistance from women who had risen through the ranks in male-dominated fields like police forces. “They were worried about how they would be perceived.”

Everyone has a story. Courtesy of: iStock

But some experts warn that disclosing menopause symptoms also carries risk, because it could play into assumptions that women are less productive at work as they age. As a result, it may be better to start slow, folding menopause assistance into existing workplace resources, than introduce something totally new, like a cool room, said Dr. Stephanie Faubion, medical director of the North American Menopause Society.

“The last thing we need is some other reason for workplace discrimination against women and to handicap them in some way by saying there’s something wrong with them at menopause that requires accommodation,” she said.

Now there is progress to share here

Nvidia, which has about 13,000 employees in the United States, began offering access to Peppy Health in the U.K, to those employees and their partners this year, after about a dozen women had asked for help finding symptom relief. 

Bristol Myers Squibb, the New York-based global pharmaceutical company, is in the early stages of setting up menopause support for its U.S.-based employees. Its British subsidiary, which allows employees to develop tailored symptom-management plans, was named Menopause Friendly Employer of the Year in 2022.

Carla Daily, global lead for the Bristol Myers Squibb Network of Women, said the company is planning to set up a hub for menopause information on its intranet. Eventually, U.S. employees will have the same opportunities as their British counterparts.

Carla shared a personal thought, and I quote: “If I was going through menopause in the U.K., I could have this honest conversation with my manager about what I need in the event of a flare-up or in the event that I need to take a moment for myself,” she said. “We don’t have that in the U.S.” End quote.

Hopefully, U.S. women employees will have that moment in quick time throughout all companies. 

What can we learn from this story? What’s the take away

Why is knowledge about women dealing with menopause in the workplace important, and more so for men?

It's important to remember that menopause is normal and that support should be available to help women at work. Menopausal women are the fastest-growing demographic in the workforce. It's important now more than ever for women to speak openly about menopause at work without fear of being looked upon as a complainer. 

Well, there you go my friends. That's life, I swear.

For further information regarding the material covered in this episode, I invite you to visit my website, which you can find on either Apple Podcasts/iTunes or Google Podcasts, for show notes calling out key pieces of content mentioned and the episode transcript.

As always, I thank you for listening. 

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