Unison: The menopause is a workplace issue - guidance and model policy

More documents

Recommendations

Info

mThe menopause is a workplace issue: guidance and model policyWhat are the possible menopausalsymptoms and how could they impacton work?8Some women experience almost nomenopausal symptoms, but around 80% doexperience noticeable changes and of these,45% find their symptoms difficult to dealwith. Without treatment, most menopausalsymptoms gradually stop naturally.Sometimes it can be difficult to tell if symptomsare caused by the menopause or other factors.Many of those experiencing the menopausemay feel confused or powerless if they don’tunderstand why their body is behaving in theway it is.For many others it is a distressing timepsychologically as a result of the physicalsymptoms impacting on their relationships andself-confidence (such as a reduced sex driveor weight gain), as well as symptoms directlycaused by the menopause such as anxiety andreduced concentration.As the menopause factsheet from‘Women’s Health Concern’ (www.womenshealth-concern.org)explains: “For somewomen this loss of reproductive ability may bedeeply felt, and for all women the menopauseis a personal experience, not just a medicalcondition.”All the common menopausal symptoms areassociated with a decrease in the body’sproduction of oestrogen.The impact of these symptoms on aworker’s self-confidence, mental health andrelationships with others, will clearly have animpact not only on their life outside work butalso their working life, particularly, given thestresses and strains of a busy workplace.These symptoms could include:• Hot flushes – a very common symptomaffecting 3 in every 4 women experiencingthe menopause. They can start in the face,neck or chest, before spreading upwardsand downward. The woman may sweat,the skin may become red and patchy, andthe heart rate can also become quicker orstronger.• Heavy and painful periods and clots,leaving women exhausted, some womenanaemic as well as practically needing tochange sanitary wear more frequently.• Night sweats, restless leg syndrome andsleep disturbance – common during theperimenopause, menopause and postmenopause,and with a close associationwith the presence of flushes and sweats.• Low mood, irritability, increased anxiety,panic attacks, fatigue, poor concentrationand memory problems.• Urinary problems – more frequent urinaryincontinence and urinary tract infectionssuch as cystitis. It is common to have anurgent need to pass urine or a need topass it more often than normal.• Irritated skin – including dry and itchyskin or formication, and dry eyes. Alsovaginal symptoms of dryness, itching anddiscomfort.• Joint and muscle aches and stiffness.• Weight gain.• Headaches and migraines.• Menopausal hair loss – very commonly,the volume and condition of a woman’shair appears to worsen, with some womennoticing that hair does not grow as muchas previously. Some women will go onto experience a more profound hair loss,with thinning at the crown of the head,the sides or more general hair thinning allover the head. This is described as femalepattern hair loss (FPHL).• Osteoporosis – the strength and densityof bones are affected by the loss ofoestrogen, increasing the risk of the bonethinningdisease osteoporosis. The firstsign that a woman has it is usually thefracture of a bone.• Menopausal symptoms may alsoexacerbate existing impairments andconditions that women may already bestruggling to cope with.
Clearly any and all of these symptoms wouldaffect someone in their day-to-day lives,including at work.It’s therefore important for managers and tradeunion reps to be aware of these symptoms sothat they can appreciate the full extent of howsome workers experience the menopause andits impact on work.It’s worth remembering that some women andtrans people who experience the menopausemay get all the symptoms at the same timeor at different times throughout menopause.Other workers may only suffer with a fewsymptoms that are manageable whereas afew others may sail through the menopauseand hardly notice any symptoms. Everyone isdifferent!A 2017 survey conducted by the BritishMenopause Society (BMS) https://thebms.org.uk found that “almost half (45%) of women,whose menopause had a strong impact ontheir lives, felt their menopause symptomshave had a negative impact on their work.Comments from respondents includedwanting:“information and training for male and femalemanagers on how to best discuss andsupport colleagues experiencing menopause.Information that educates colleagues of allages about menopause and some of thecultural issues that affect the way in whichdifferent ethnic groups will experiencemenopause.....Maybe a better understanding of thesymptoms, particularly for males, so they canunderstand it’s a serious issue and that womenaren’t just being ‘difficult’.”UNISON says we need to talk about themenopause and we need to supportthose struggling with difficult menopausesymptoms in the workplace.The survey also revealed that the menopauseremains a ‘taboo’ subject in the UK andsomething women and men don’t always feelcomfortable talking about.”Key findings from ‘The menopause: aworkplace issue – a report of a Wales TUCsurvey investigating the menopause in theworkplace’ (www.tuc.org.uk/research-analysis/reports/menopause-workplace-issue-walestuc)include:• Only just over a third of respondents saidthey would feel comfortable talking abouttheir menopause status at work.• Less than 1% said their workplace hada policy on menopause but almost 90%would welcome one.• Nearly 90% would also welcome trainingfor union reps so that they could supportwomen experiencing the menopause atwork.9
Page 1 and 2: mMenopauseThe menopause is a workpl
Page 3 and 4: ForewordThis guide is designed to a
Page 5 and 6: How branches can benefit fromnegoti
Page 7: Everyone’s experience of the meno
Page 11 and 12: Women’s experience at workThe 201
Page 13 and 14: UNISON members’ experiencesOne UN
Page 15 and 16: Changing workplace policies andprac
Page 17 and 18: StressEmployers need to be aware th
Page 19 and 20: The role of the trade unionBeing aw
Page 21 and 22: Jane Gebbie, chair of both the regi
Page 23 and 24: NHS WalesIn the health service sect
Page 25 and 26: A minimal change isrequired for a p
Page 27 and 28: employers. The general equality dut
Page 29 and 30: Does the policy recognise that opti
Page 31 and 32: 6. There are sometimes more physica
Page 33 and 34: Definition of the menopause(See als
Page 35 and 36: • access to drinking water• uni
Page 37 and 38: Trade union involvementConsultation
Page 39 and 40: Menopause Matterswww.menopausematte

Unison: The menopause is a workplace issue - guidance and model policy

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?