MPs have called for menopause to be a protected characteristic and a special ambassador to keep women in the workplace, after a report showed the UK is “hemorrhaging talent”.
Employers’ lack of support for menopausal symptoms is pushing “highly skilled and experienced” women out of work, the cross-party women and equalities committee has said.
Their report calls on the government to amend the Equality Act to introduce menopause as a protected characteristic and include a duty on employers to provide reasonable adjustments to menopausal employees.
MPs are also calling on ministers to scrap dual prescription charges for estrogen and progesterone as part of hormone replacement therapy (HRT), replacing them with a single charge.
With 4.5 million women aged 50-64 currently employed, the report highlights the knock-on effects of unemployment on the gender pay gap, the pension gap and the number in management positions.
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Research has shown that women who experience at least one troublesome symptom of menopause are 43% more likely to have left work by the age of 55 than those without severe symptoms, while Bupa research shows that 900,000 menopausal women have left work.
The report recommends that a menopause ambassador could develop model policies and disseminate good practice, in collaboration with employers, unions and other stakeholders.
It also criticized an “unacceptable” postcode lottery for access to specialist care and recommends that there should be a specialist menopause service in every commissioning clinical group.
The report found that stigma, lack of support and discrimination were key factors in women leaving the workplace; that current law does not serve or protect menopausal women; and women felt that their GP was not well equipped to diagnose or treat menopause properly, with women also paying more than they should for prescriptions.
It called on the government to launch an immediate consultation on introducing menopause as a protected characteristic, launch a public health campaign on menopausal symptoms and pilot a ‘menopausal leave’ policy in the public sector.
Chair of the women and equalities committee, Caroline Nokes MP, said: “Omitting menopause as a protected characteristic under the Equality Act is no longer sustainable, given that 51% of the population will experience menopause .
“Menopausal women have been mocked and maligned for too long. It’s time for the government to seize the opportunity to pass change. It’s time to support and celebrate these women.”
Colin Davidson, head of employment at Edwards Duthie Shamash and co-chair of the Discrimination Law Association, who gave evidence to the committee, said: “The Government must listen to the committee’s proposals and act now to make menopause a feature protected to prevent it. women from suffering harassment and discrimination at work simply because it is a natural part of their life cycle”.
A government spokesman said: “The UK-wide Menopause Task Force is looking to break down the taboos surrounding menopause and considering the role that workplace policies can play in supporting menopausal women, and the government’s health and welfare fund is helping to expand and develop projects that support women going through menopause to stay in the workplace.”