Menopause is a natural phase in a woman's life, yet it remains a topic shrouded in stigma and silence, especially in the workplace. All the while, more women are excelling in their careers well into their 50's and beyond meaning it is imperative that employers recognise and address the unique challenges menopause can present in the workplace.
Shedding light on the importance of menopause awareness in the workplace, the following practical recommendations will help to create a more accommodating and understanding workplace culture.
How can employers support workers experiencing menopause? Are there any specific laws requiring certain accommodations?
Australian legislation currently does not provide for explicit protections for women experiencing debilitating symptoms of menopause in the workplace. However, employers have legal obligations surrounding employee health and safety, including a duty to ensure work conditions and environments do not adversely impact on health. Employers also have various obligations under anti-discrimination law which can provide some protections to employees.
The need to improve awareness about the impact of menopause and to navigate menopause in the workplace has become more visible in Australia over the past years.
In September 2024, the Australian Senate Community Affairs References Committee (Committee) published a report on issues related to menopause and perimenopause (the Report). The Committee looked at the impact of menopause and perimenopause on work and the related economic consequences. The Committee provided 25 recommendations for the Australian Parliament to consider to better support women in this stage of their lives, which include:
- encouraging employers to develop perimenopause and menopause workplace policies in consultation with their employees;
- considering an amendment of legislation (Section 65 (1A) of the Fair Work Act 2009) to add employees who experience menopause as a category of employees who have a legal right to request a flexible working arrangements;
- considering adding a right to paid gender-inclusive reproductive leave into the National Employment Standards and modern awards; and
- allowing the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) to re-commence data collection on the supports employers are providing, and their usage, for employees experiencing menopause and perimenopause, including specific workplace policies.
Options to support workers experiencing menopause in the workplace
There are a variety of options available to employers to support employees experiencing menopause. Addressing menopause and educating the workforce will support all employees in creating awareness and understanding within the workplace. Employees and managers should, amongst others, be informed on the symptoms of menopause, the impact of such symptoms at work, access to resources about treatment options and the menopause-specific workplace resources that are available.
Furthermore, employers should consider implementing wellbeing policies which provide for reasonable workplace adjustments and flexibility to support employees during menopause experiences at the workplace. Policies can provide for:
- access to cool drinking water, temperature regulation and ventilation;
- flexibility of dress codes;
- longer or more frequent breaks to manage symptoms;
- better access to toilets;
- increased flexibility such as extend opportunities to work from home or to work different hours;
- access to adjustments in the workplace to manage symptoms at the workplace; and
- the option to take leave.
In addition, employer policies on inclusive workplaces and preventing discrimination, bullying and exclusion could be made inclusive of menopause.
There are various resources available for employers to establish supportive workplaces for workers experiencing the menopause transition. One of these resources is the Menopause Information Pack for Organisations co-developed by three universities, which provides free resources to develop menopause-sensitive policies and support managers to be menopause friendly. Furthermore, the Victorian Women’s Trust offers a freely available policy template.
What are the main stumbling blocks towards helping employees with menopause? How can employers encourage workers to share that information voluntarily?
Stumbling blocks are the lack of awareness and information on the symptoms and the impact of menopause in the workplace, the stigma attached to menopause and the fear of workplace repercussion, gender ageism and discrimination. These factors can directly contribute to women being reluctant to disclose experiences of troublesome symptoms and request reasonable adjustments or resources in the workplace.
Evidence indicates that the level of awareness in the community and information available is very low. Women experience significant barriers in accessing diagnosis and treatment. Stigma contributes to a lack of awareness and understanding. During the Senate Inquiry leading to the Report, stigma and taboo in relation to experiencing menopause symptoms were cited as having a direct impact on women’s ability to maximise workforce participation, take leave or access appropriate workplace supports.
Furthermore, the fear of repercussion, discrimination and being positioned as older and therefore of less relevance in society due to gender-ageism stereotypes means that women may be more likely to hide menopausal experiences and symptoms. The 2023 National Women's Health Survey on Australian women's attitudes to menstrual and menopause leave found that over 70% of Australian women believed that some employers or co-workers would use menopause as an excuse to discriminate against women, and over 80% believed that some employers or co-workers would not be understanding if someone took menopause leave.
Promoting internal awareness for employees and managers of women’s health needs and (the impact of) menopause related issues, implementing organisation wide menopause policies and sharing menopause-specific workplace resources can help to address the stigma and create a culture where women feel more supported and comfortable to openly discuss menopause experiences and request for leave, workplace flexibility or other accommodations.
How can employers attempt to combat the gender pay gap more generally? What obligations exist in Australia regarding this?
The Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) is an Australian Government statutory agency responsible for promoting and improving gender equality in Australian workplaces. Under the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 (Cth) (WGE Acttext in italic), employers with 100 or more employees in Australia are required to prepare and lodge an annual public report to WGEA which address the gender equality indicators. Equal remuneration between women and men is one of these indicators.
The WGE Act has been amended in 2024 by means of the Workplace Gender Equality Amendment (Closing the Gender Pay Gap) Bill 2023 in an effort to boost transparency and facilitate action towards closing the gender pay gap in Australia. This new legislation enables WGEA to publicly report the gender pay gaps at the individual employer level on its website. Employers with workforces of over 100 employees are required to have their gender pay gap information publicly reported on the WGEA website and to provide additional workforce data to WGEA on employee age, primary workplace location and CEO remuneration. In addition, employer with 500 or more employees must have a formal policy or strategy in place on equal remuneration and pay equity between women and men.
On 20 November 2024, the Workplace Gender Equality Amendment (Setting Gender equality Targets) Bill 2024 has been introduced to the Australian Parliament. If passed, this Bill will require employers with 500 or more employees to select and meet targets in a three-year period. These targets can be selected from a list in an associated instrument and relate to the gender equality indicators referred to above.
Options to combat the gender pay gap
Closing the gender pay gap requires cultural change to remove the barriers to the equal participation of women in the workforce. WGEA provides tools and guides for employers to improve workplace gender equality and published an Action Planning Playbook in October 2024 to help employers build a gender equality action plan and narrow the gender pay gap. WGEA identified three key actions fundamental to success: (i) undertake a gender pay gap analysis, (ii) select relevant evidence-informed actions, and (iii) set targets to track progress.
A gender pay gap analysis in the organisation is the first step in narrowing the gap. Such analysis can help organisation to understand the size of the gender pay gaps, to uncover the most common drivers of gender pay gaps and to take effective action to address these gaps.
Organisations should furthermore promote equity, diversity, and inclusion within their workplace. This can be accomplished by providing training to employees and managers to apply a gender lens to caregiving and flexibility and by assessing and/or adjusting policies and programs in accordance with the actions identified in the gender pay gap analysis. Policies on recruitment and job advertising, promotion and performance evaluation may for example require revision. Employers can opt for creating new opportunities for women to participate at senior levels, setting KPIs for leadership to increase accountability for gender equality and encouraging men to access flexible work arrangements and leave entitlements.
In addition, employers with less than 500 employees can voluntarily introduce a formal policy or strategy on equal remuneration and pay equity between women and men. Such policy could set out the gender equality objectives to be achieved through remuneration strategies, the required transparency of pay scales and/or salary bands, processes for raising pay complaints and correcting pay inequalities, processes and criteria for making reward decisions and including employees on parental leave in annual salary reviews and clear responsibilities for recruitment to adhere to established pay structures and transparency on pay in job advertisements.
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