Menopause specialists Health & Her have launched a personalised Employer Menopause Support Plan to help women through menopause in the workplace.

The plan helps employers provide their staff with advice and training and discounts on menopause-related supplements and solutions. The launch follows research by Health & Her into what women want to help them through their menopause journey.

Developed by leading female health specialists in the UK, the plan offers access to menopause-specialist GPs, expert advice and articles, managerial and employee training, digital tools to help manage menopause symptoms, and GP-led webinars.

The plan comes at an urgent time for menopause sufferers in the workplace and their employers, with absenteeism and attrition growing concerns, as well as the livelihood of businesses being increasingly affected.

Research from Health & Her found that 10% of women are leaving the workforce, and 1 in 4 are considering leaving due to the severity of menopause symptoms. In fact, some 370,000 UK women aged between 50 and 64 have left or have considered leaving because of it.

For those that choose to remain in the workplace, the menopause is affecting their productivity, with around a quarter of perimenopausal women, also known as the period before menopause begins and when menopause symptoms can start, admitting to making mistakes at work, and 6% who have had to skip work meetings.

The menopause is also leading to workplace absenteeism, with 15% saying they have called in sick due to menopausal symptoms, according to the same Health & Her research. Furthermore, a quarter has had to reduce their hours or change their work pattern.

Menopause is also damaging the financial health of businesses, with perimenopause and menopause costing UK businesses 14 million working days per year in health-related absences, which equates to £1.88 billion in lost productivity per year.

Co-founder of Health & Her Kate Bache said: “This support plan is a positive first step in creating workplaces that better support female employees experiencing perimenopause or menopausal symptoms. With the Office of National Statistics suggesting that women aged 50 to 64 are the fastest-growing economically active group, businesses need to adapt and create an environment that upholds and nourishes this talented, experienced, and able demographic – rather than risk losing them altogether.

“What is important to remember is that each menopause is unique – every woman is an individual who has an individual experience of menopause. As such, helping to support women going through perimenopause and menopause, businesses must develop a culture and policy approach that both encourages menopausal women generally and helps target their specific needs and requirements.”

For more information about Health & Her’s menopause support plan, click here.

In this article, you learned that:

• Menopause specialists Health & Her have launched a personalised Employer Menopause Support Plan to help women through menopause in the workplace.
  
• Research from Health & Her found that 10% of women are leaving the workforce, and 1 in 4 are considering leaving due to the severity of menopause symptoms.
  
• Perimenopause and menopause cost UK businesses 14 million working days per year in absences.