Seven in ten women expect employers to have a menopause leave policy in place

Seven in ten women expect their employer to have a menopause policy in place but only 18% do

The laya healthcare Workplace Wellbeing Index reports

• Seven in ten women expect employers to have a menopause leave policy in place
• One in three HR leaders claim their company offers menopause leave
• Almost half of women look for fertility supports when job searching

Now more than ever, employees are placing greater importance on access to menopause supports within their organisations (and not just women of menopause age). The biggest increase in importance this year comes from men, reflective of the wider conversation and de-stigmatisation of menopause, with 50% noting the importance of a menopause policy when looking for a new job.

Results showed that both men and women feel that menopause supports are important for employers to provide, an increase from 10% last year to 13% now. Seven in ten women say it’s important to have a menopause policy in place (with 56% of men of the same opinion) and 56% say that it is a significant factor when searching for a new job.

Interestingly, 36% of HR leaders said that their organisation offers menopause leave while only 16% of employees noted the same. This gap showcases the need for organisations to raise awareness of this important service. 

Of a similar vein, fertility supports are of significant importance for both men (47%) and women (49%) when looking for a new job. Females questioned did place a slightly higher importance on miscarriage, baby loss leave, fertility and surrogacy leave. The results showed that more availability and indeed awareness of availability of these services is required – an important note for HR leaders.

Commenting on the research findings, Sinead Proos, Head of Health & Wellbeing at laya healthcare said,

A point of interest from the research is that issues surrounding women’s health have become much more prevalent for their male counterparts. Despite this, we know that women continue to carry the burden with the data showing that more women are working while sick and struggling with sleep

While more and more companies look to be introducing assistance, employees need to be made aware of the supports on offer; these could include additional leave as required, access to virtual GP’s and counselling or other mental health supports.

I encourage HR leaders to download the supporting playbooks providing greater insight and suggestions of how to tackle the issues raised available at layahealthcare.ie/wellbeingindex.

Dr Sumi Dunne, GP & Clinical Lecturer adds

The data is encouraging. It is hugely positive to see the increased calls for supports from both male and female employees and indeed to see a changing landscape in terms of supports for menopause, fertility and other experiences which can have a detrimental effect on a persons’ wellbeing. I hugely encourage open dialogue around these topics in the workplace, paving the way for a shift in thinking and a greater understanding of the journey that someone may be on.

Laya healthcare is helping employers stay a beat ahead by supporting their employee’s mental health through the Workplace Wellbeing Index, one of Ireland’s largest studies among Irish employees and employers in the workplace. The full Workplace Wellbeing Index report, supporting playbooks and indeed speaker series to support a healthy workforce, can be downloaded / viewed at layahealthcare.ie/wellbeingindex.