Dysmenorrhea – better known as ‘period pain’ – is a very real and sometimes debilitating burden many women have to endure on a monthly basis. Alongside crippling pain, women also have to contend with other unpleasant symptoms that go with it such as nausea, vomiting, dizziness, tiredness, and headache. It really is a cross to bear for many women, and one they can do very little about except pain relief and rest.
But adding to this extreme discomfort is the need to still work while suffering from it. They should just take a day off, you might say. Sounds very simple, but in reality the situation is more complex than it first appears. Not every woman can simply take a day off once a month, some may not be able to take a day off at all. Yet they still have to endure this debilitating physical symptom while attempting to do their jobs.
But it appears things are changing, too slowly for many women who suffer, but progress is being made. Some companies have understood the plight of their female employees and offer one day per month of paid leave during their menstrual period, while others have created special relaxation rooms where the employee(s) can relax and rest without affecting their work. Some countries – such as Japan, China, Taiwan, Indonesia, South Korea, Mexico, and Zambia – have passed legislation ensuring the right of paid leave for women during their menstrual cycle, but most others have still not to date.
We believe this to be a right all women in every country should possess and in this article we present 5 reasons why.
1. Compassion
This is an obvious but pertinent reason that needs no explaining. The debilitating pain a woman suffers at this time is not and cannot be understood or appreciated by those who don’t have to endure it. One wonders if men had to suffer the same symptoms as women did, whether legislation granting paid leave would have been passed a long time ago, alas.
2. Well-being
Any good and reputable company wants to look after the people under their charge. Not just caring for their safety while at work but also their well-being, and that very much includes health-related issues as well. Ensuring your employees are happy and healthy isn’t just common decency but also good business practice, and with dysmenorrhea, that can affect productivity. By ensuring the well-being of your female staff by allowing them to work from home during the worst of their menstrual cycle, you are actually contributing to the overall wellness of your company.
3. Productivity
As a working business, any company wants to limit unnecessary absenteeism and the loss of productivity that is inevitable with it. But if your female employees are suffering from terrible period pains, how can they be as productive as you (and they) would like? There are many reasons why people are less productive during a typical working day, but a woman’s biological cycle shouldn’t be one of them. Giving menstrual leave even one day a month will actually boost productivity overall as the woman may be able to work from home, or if having a free day, will be back to work rested and ready to be productive again the next day.
4. Work Relations
It’s important for employees to know that management of a company cares for their concerns. It promotes a more harmonious working environment that is both pleasant and productive. To understand and accommodate menstrual leave for female employees tells them how valued and important their well-being is to the company, and could foster a sense of loyalty and better job satisfaction within the company workforce at large. Any company wants a happy workforce with no thoughts of wanting to leave, so treating female employees with consideration puts out the signal to everyone that they all are valued.
5. Gender Equality
Let’s be honest, women have had to fight tooth and nail for equal employment rights over the years, and the issue of menstrual leave is an issue we believe whose time has come. For too long, women have to simply “put up with” their monthly menstrual cycles, while being expected to work and/or raise a family at the same time. So accommodating a woman’s biological needs one day a month would greatly equal the playing field for our mothers, daughters, sisters, and wives by giving them the dignity and respect due. Who could possibly argue against that!?
Passing legislation that allows women the dignity of at least one day per month to look after their health needs is not just some trippy-hippy idea but a very real and long-overdue acknowledgement of our common humanity and another step forward to making society a better place.
