University of Glasgow

We're dismantling the menopause stigma so everyone feels empowered at work

One of the first studies in the world to explore employee's lived experience of menstrual health and menopause is informing national policy.

The study by Professor Kat Riach of our Adam Smith Business School has informed the new workforce policy to help address health inequalities in the labour market. 

"Advancing Menopause and Menstrual Health in Organisations: A National Study of Employees in Health and Social Care" launched in October 2023, in collaboration with the Scottish Government, and is based on survey responses from over 6,000 NHS Scotland employees.

The study seeks to understand the needs of women and people who menstruate to create an environment where those experiencing menopause or menstruation feel supported and valued in the workplace.

Most employees can continue to work through menstruation or menopausal transition without having a disruptive impact on their jobs. However, for those who do have menstrual and menopausal health experiences that have some kind of impact on their working lives, cultural, structural or institutional conditions can negatively impact and exacerbate these experiences.

The study identified five ways that workplaces could have period-positive cultural practices or positive attitudes towards menopausal transition and summarised these through the acronym of MAPLE:

• Microleave: Flexibility to manage the episodic nature of menstruation and menstrual symptoms is fundamental to improving employee experiences of menstrual health at work.
• Allyship: Creating a positive and person-centred environment on the work floor through constructive conversations is key to challenging stigma and enabling work to carry on ‘as usual’.
• Physical environment: The facilities available in a workplace environment had an impact on how sustainable work was when menstruating.
• Line management: Line Management and direct supervisor relations were seen as fundamental to viewing menstrual health as either problematic or an area that could be positively discussed and worked through in the workplace.
• Education and awareness: Workplace education and awareness around menstruation was seen to be a positive step, with an emphasis on line management training, as well as training for all colleagues.

Professor Riach said: "What we have with women and particularly women going through the menopause is a really important talent pool in the workforce.

"Ensuring that people can work longer and healthier working lives is really important, and ensuring that the research we do helps inform policy that can support that is a fantastic part of our job."