As World Menopause Month puts workplace support back in the spotlight, new research reveals one in three symptomatic women are considering leaving their job or cutting their hours, while just 6% have disclosed menopause to HR.
A new study of 1,110 US employees has exposed a significant disconnect between how comfortable women say they feel discussing menopause at work and how many actually disclose their symptoms or seek support. Almost half of symptomatic women said they would feel comfortable telling Human Resources (HR) about menopause, yet only 6% had actually done so.
The gap was also apparent with line managers. While 53% said they would feel comfortable disclosing menopause symptoms to their manager, just 21% had actually done so. The findings, from Menopause at Work: From Echo Chamber to Mainstream Practice, were published by the Society for Women’s Health Research (SWHR) and The Fuchsia Tent.
They arrive during World Menopause Month, which takes place throughout October and culminates in World Menopause Day on 18 October. This year’s global theme, led by the International Menopause Society, is Chronic Pain at Midlife. But the latest workplace research highlights another persistent challenge: greater awareness of menopause is not necessarily translating into women feeling safe or supported enough to ask for help.
ONE IN THREE CONSIDER LEAVING OR CUTTING HOURS
The consequences for employers could be significant. According to the research, 33% of symptomatic women are considering leaving their job or reducing their working hours. The finding adds to years of evidence showing how inadequate menopause support can affect retention, progression and women’s longer-term careers.
Fair Play Talks has been tracking the issue for several years. In 2020, research found that almost half of working women experiencing three or more menopause symptoms had suffered a detrimental impact on their working lives, with some reducing their hours or considering resigning.
Separate research that year found 30% of women in hospitality, travel and leisure had considered leaving their job, while more than one-quarter had avoided a promotion or taken a demotion because of menopause symptoms. By 2022, one in five women had left or considered leaving a job because of menopause, with women of colour reporting particularly high concerns around career progression and ageism.
WOMEN STILL FEAR CAREER CONSEQUENCES
The latest research suggests the problem is not simply whether menopause is openly discussed at work, but whether women believe disclosing their own symptoms could have consequences for their careers. Participants in the study’s regional roundtables raised concerns that speaking openly about menopause at work could affect career progression.
An employee can therefore feel comfortable discussing menopause as a general workplace issue while still worrying about how revealing her own brain fog, fatigue, anxiety, poor sleep, hot flushes or other symptoms could alter perceptions of her capability, commitment or leadership potential. That concern echoes earlier findings covered by Fair Play Talks.
In 2023, 60% of women said menopause remained stigmatised and 58% of peri- and post-menopausal women said they did not feel comfortable discussing symptoms at work. The same research exposed a striking perception gap.
While 76% of HR benefits managers said they discussed menopause with employees, only 3% of peri- and post-menopausal employees said they had discussed it with HR. And although 71% of employers believed their organisation had a positive culture towards menopause, only 32% of women agreed. The latest study suggests that gap between employer perception and employee experience remains highly relevant.
MENOPAUSE DISCRIMINATION REMAINS A CONCERN
Fear of disclosure also sits within a wider concern about discrimination. In 2024, 69% of people surveyed believed women face workplace discrimination because of menopause. Separate research reported by Fair Play Talks found that workplace support for menopause remained critically lacking, despite the issue becoming much more visible.
Earlier research also found that 79% of women who took time off because of menopause concealed the real reason at least some of the time, while nearly one-third believed menopause could damage their career progression. Among UK women of colour, that figure rose to 58%, compared with 32% of White UK women and 22% of White US women. The same research found that eight in 10 women struggled to manage menopause symptoms at work.
WOMEN WANT FLEXIBILITY AND BETTER ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE
The new SWHR and Fuchsia Tent study also provides employers with a clearer picture of what employees actually want. Flexible scheduling topped the list, cited by 73.7% of respondents, followed by menopause prescription coverage at 67.3%.
When participants were asked more broadly what they wanted employers to provide, three themes accounted for 56% of all comments:
- Compassionate workplace culture – 24.7%
- Flexible work and time off – 16%
- Health and wellbeing benefits – 15.5%
The findings suggest effective menopause support does not necessarily require employers to build an expensive standalone programme. Between 50% and 73% of employees reported already having access to workplace benefits that could potentially help with menopause symptoms.
Yet only 9.9% said their organisation provided menopause-specific support. That raises an important question for employers: are organisations already paying for services that could help women, but failing to explain how those benefits can be used?
AUDIT WHAT YOU ALREADY PAY FOR
Kacy Fleming, Founder and CEO of The Fuchsia Tent and Co-Principal Investigator of the study, said greater comfort discussing menopause does not automatically lead to disclosure. “Comfort with the topic of menopause does not lead to disclosure, and most women will not raise their hand, so support has to arrive proactively.”
Rather than immediately buying new benefits, Fleming urged employers to examine what they already offer. “Employers should audit what they already pay for, connect those benefits to menopause, and communicate them where every employee will see them.”
That could include healthcare benefits, prescription coverage, mental health support, employee assistance programmes, telehealth, wellbeing services, flexible working and leave. “This study asked the whole workforce about menopause, and the answer was consistent: employees want the same care they would expect for any other health issue, and visibility into existing benefits,” stated Syreen Goulmamine, Associate Director of Research Translation and Programs at SWHR and Co-Principal Investigator.
SUPPORT SHOULD NOT DEPEND ON DISCLOSURE
One of the clearest implications of the research is that workplace menopause strategies cannot rely solely on employees putting their hands up and asking for help. If only 6% of symptomatic women are disclosing to HR, employers risk underestimating demand and assuming support is unnecessary simply because employees are not requesting it.
That problem has emerged before. Previous research found that the most common reason employers gave for not offering menopause-specific benefits was that employees had not asked for them. The latest findings suggest absence of requests should not be interpreted as absence of need.
FROM AWARENESS TO ACTION
The findings are particularly timely following the recent launch of ISO 45010, the world’s first international workplace standard specifically addressing menstruation and menopause. As reported in September, the standard aims to move organisations beyond awareness towards practical action across workplace culture, policies and procedures, manager capability, workplace design and adjustments.
Research accompanying the standard found that seven in 10 women wanted employers to adopt a clear approach to reproductive health at work, yet six in 10 said their organisation had never proactively discussed menopause support. Only 38% of employees who had experienced menopause, perimenopause or menstrual-health challenges felt confident their employer would support them in finding a solution.
The evidence suggests the workplace conversation is therefore entering a new phase. Breaking the taboo was important. But awareness is only useful if women experience meaningful support when they need it.
WHAT EMPLOYERS SHOULD DO
The latest research points to several practical steps organisations can take.
1. Audit existing benefits
Review what the organisation already provides, including healthcare, prescription coverage, occupational health, mental health support, EAPs, wellbeing programmes, flexible working and leave. Then clearly explain which services can support employees experiencing menopause.
2. Make support easy to find
Women should not have to search through multiple policies or disclose intimate health details before discovering what help exists. Bring relevant information together and communicate it regularly.
3. Build flexibility into everyday work
With 73.7% identifying flexible scheduling as desirable support, organisations should consider how start and finish times, working locations, breaks and temporary working patterns can help.
4. Train managers
Managers do not need to become menopause experts. But they do need enough understanding to have compassionate conversations, respect confidentiality, avoid assumptions about capability and signpost employees towards appropriate support.
5. Review healthcare and prescription coverage
With 67.3% identifying menopause prescription coverage as desirable, employers providing health benefits should understand whether menopause treatment is included and whether employees know how to access it.
6. Consider practical workplace adjustments
Temperature, ventilation, uniforms, rest breaks, access to water and private spaces can all influence somebody’s experience at work.
7. Monitor retention and progression
Look beyond absence. Are women in midlife disproportionately reducing their hours? Turning down promotion? Moving into less demanding positions? Or leaving altogether? Where appropriate, those patterns may identify problems that disclosure statistics alone miss.
8. Address ageism and gender bias
Menopause does not happen in isolation from other workplace inequalities. Previous research has highlighted its intersection with ageism, gender inequality and race. The issue is particularly relevant given the wider challenges experienced by women later in their careers. TUC analysis earlier this year found the gender pay gap rises to 19.7% among women aged 50–59 – the highest of any age group.
9. Do not make disclosure a condition of support
Where possible, workplace practices should give employees access to flexibility and support without forcing them to reveal more personal health information than necessary.
10. Create a compassionate culture
The largest category of open-text responses in the study – 24.7% – called for compassionate workplace culture. Benefits and policies matter. But so does what happens when a woman actually approaches her manager and asks for help.
IF YOU’RE GOING THROUGH MENOPAUSE AT WORK
Women should not have to struggle silently or feel they have to choose between managing their symptoms and protecting their career. If menopause is affecting your working life, you may want to:
- Decide what you feel comfortable sharing. You do not necessarily need to disclose every symptom or personal health detail.
- Find out what support already exists, including flexible working, occupational health, employee assistance programmes, healthcare benefits and leave.
- Ask for practical changes that could help you manage symptoms, such as different working hours, more breaks, adjustments to location or temperature, or temporary workload changes.
- Put agreed arrangements in writing, particularly where hours, working patterns or responsibilities change.
- Ask for regular check-ins if your symptoms fluctuate or your needs change.
- Consider speaking to occupational health if you would prefer professional guidance on workplace adjustments.
- Speak to HR, a trade union or an employee network if you would prefer not to raise the issue initially with your line manager.
- Seek independent advice if you believe you are experiencing discrimination or that menopause is adversely affecting your progression or treatment at work.
Most importantly, needing workplace support does not mean somebody is less capable, committed or ambitious. And employers should not expect women to navigate menopause entirely on their own.
MENOPAUSE AT WORK MATTERS
World Menopause Month gives employers an opportunity to raise awareness. But the latest findings suggest organisations should use October for something more substantial than awareness campaigns alone.
They should ask:
- Do employees actually know what support we provide?
- Would somebody feel safe asking for it?
- Do managers know how to respond?
- Can women access flexibility without fearing damage to their careers?
- And are we measuring whether midlife women are quietly reducing hours, turning down opportunities or leaving?
The question is particularly important as the number of women reaching menopause while still economically active continues to grow. Last year, Fair Play Talks reported that more than 1.2 billion women are expected to be menopausal or post-menopausal globally by 2030, with improved support potentially contributing more than $120 billion annually to the global economy through improved retention, productivity and wellbeing.
WORKPLACE MENOPAUSE CONVERSATIONS
The workplace menopause conversation has undoubtedly moved forward. But visibility should not be mistaken for inclusion.
A company can talk openly about menopause and still have women who fear disclosure. It can offer benefits that employees do not know exist. And it can run awareness campaigns while experienced women quietly reduce their hours or consider walking away.
World Menopause Month therefore offers employers an opportunity to move from conversation to action – and create workplaces where women can manage their health without sacrificing their careers.
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