Menstrual Leaves
Who are menstruators?
Menstruators is an inclusive term that refers to individuals who have female reproductive anatomy and experience menstrual periods. It includes women, trans men, and non-binary persons as well. This biological process also decouples menstruation from womanhood.
What is the Menstrual cycle?
- It is a series of natural changes in hormone production and the structures of the uterus and ovaries of the female reproductive system that makes pregnancy possible. Most women experience a menstrual cycle of 28 days— a normal cycle may vary from 23 to 35 days.
- Period pain, or Dysmenorrhea: It is a medical term used to describe painful menstrual cramps that occur just before or during menstruation. More than half of those who menstruate experience pain for a couple of days a month; for some it is debilitating enough to hamper daily activities and productivity. Between 15% to 25% of people who menstruate will experience moderate to severe menstrual cramps, according to a study by the University of Michigan.
- Premenstrual syndrome (PMS): PMS can cause physical and emotional symptoms, such as bloating, mood swings, and fatigue, in the days leading up to menstruation.
What are menstrual leaves?
Menstrual leave refers to a specific form of time off for those who experience period pains. It recommends that workers be given leave from work while menstruating, just as they would for any illness. In the context of the workplace, it refers to policies that allow for both paid or unpaid leave, or time for rest. In India, there is no legislative provision for menstrual leave.
How is menstruation neglected and taboo?
In India, menstruation is considered taboo with notions of purity and pollution. Misinformation, superstitions, societal restrictions, and poor access to sanitation facilities and menstrual products are all apparent indicators of the country's reality and levels of neglect. Due to the neglect, menstrual hygiene continues to be one of the most neglected issues that Indian women face. In a country where more than 355 million women are in their menstrual age, more than 75% of them use old cloth during periods instead of safer and hygienic methods.
Arguments in favor of menstrual leaves:
1. Biological process comes with physical pain: Though menstruation is a biological process, it is accompanied by cramps, nausea, back and muscle pains, headaches, etc. Additionally, these can take a debilitating form amongst menstruating people who suffer from polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and endometriosis. For instance, In India, 20 percent of menstruators have PCOS and approximately 25 million suffer from endometriosis. The intensity of pain can vary for individuals for a variety of reasons.
2. Ensure productivity: Menstrual leave helps ensure that women can fully participate in the workforce and can perform to the best of their abilities.
3. Acknowledges the reality: For many menstruators, it is a biological process intertwined with medical symptoms. Mandatory period leave is an affirmative action policy that acknowledges this reality.
4. Opportunity for women to speak up: Menstrual leave could be an opportunity for women to speak up about their menstrual cycle and receive treatment for health issues related to it.
5. Detaches stigma and discrimination: Additionally, menstrual leave can help reduce the stigma surrounding menstruation and promote a culture of openness and support for women.
Arguments against menstrual leaves:
1. Fear of bias in hiring: The major opposition to a menstrual leave policy is the fear of bias in hiring due to the financial costs to employers. Discriminatory hiring has been a cause of concern in many countries.
2. Probable decline in women's labor force participation: It is often equated to the decline in the labor force participation of women following the introduction of mandatory paid maternity leave.
3. Medicalising normal biological process: Period leave is often seen as medicalizing a normal biological process.
4. Stigma: Menstrual leave may perpetuate the stigma around menstruation and reinforce harmful stereotypes about women’s ability to work.
5. Difficulties in implementation: Employers may struggle to verify whether an employee is genuinely experiencing menstrual symptoms, which could lead to resentment or disputes.
What Kind of Menstrual Leave Policies are in Place Globally?
Spain: Recently, Spain became the first European country to grant paid menstrual leave to workers, among a host of other sexual health rights. Workers now have the right to three days of menstrual leave expandable to five days a month.
Japan: Japan introduced menstrual leave as part of labor law in 1947. At present, employers cannot ask women who experience difficult periods to work during that time.
Indonesia: Indonesia too introduced a policy in 1948, amended in 2003, saying that workers experiencing menstrual pain are not obliged to work on the first two days of their cycle.
Philippines: In the Philippines, workers are permitted two days of menstrual leave a month.
Taiwan: Taiwan has an Act of Gender Equality in Employment in place. Under the Act, employees have the right to request a day off as period leave every month, at half their regular wage.
South Korea: South Korea takes a slightly different route, allowing for monthly physiologic leave under their labor law, allowing all female workers to get a day off every month.
Vietnam: Vietnam’s labor law takes a different approach too, stipulating a 30-minute break for women every day of their period cycle. However, in 2020, a three-day leave per month was added, and those who didn’t take the leave needed to be paid extra.
Africa: Among the African nations, Zambia introduced one day of leave a month without needing a reason or a medical certificate, calling it Mother’s Day.
Other regions: the United Kingdom, China, and Wales also have some provisions for menstrual leave. The U.S. does not have a formal policy in place either; the U.S. also does not have a federal requirement for paid sick leave. Companies across nations, such as Nike and Coexist, have introduced menstrual leave as an internal policy.
What attempts are being made in India?
Private Companies: Companies like Zomato, Swiggy, and Byjus have brought menstrual leave policies.
State governments: Bihar and Kerala are the only states to introduce menstrual leave to women.
The Bihar government has introduced its menstrual leave policy in 1992, allowing employees two days of paid menstrual leave every month. Recently, the Kerala government has also announced that the State’s Higher Education department will now grant menstrual and maternity leaves for students in universities.
Parliamentary measures: The measures taken in the Parliament have been mostly unsuccessful. For example, The Menstruation Benefits Bill, 2017 was introduced in the Parliament but was disregarded as an unclean topic. Later, the Women’s Sexual, Reproductive, and Menstrual Rights Bill was introduced in 2018 but wasn’t approved. However, again The Right of Women to Menstrual Leave and Free Access to Menstrual Health Products Bill, 2022 will be introduced in Parliament. It provides for three days of paid leave for women and transwomen during the period of menstruation. It also seeks to extend the benefit to students. The Bill states that approximately 40% of girls miss school during their periods, and nearly 65% said it had an impact on their daily activities at school.
What is the need of the hour?
Need to bridge the gaps: The path to equality does not lie in inaction due to fear of further discrimination. What is needed is a holistic outlook aimed at bridging existing gaps.
A comprehensive and inclusive approach is a must: The implementation of menstrual leave should be based on a comprehensive and inclusive approach that takes into account the needs and rights of all employees, regardless of gender.
Mandatory self-care leaves as an alternative: Employers should be made to introduce a mandatory self-care leave as an alternative to period leaves for those who cannot avail of the latter. Employees should be able to utilize their self-care leave as they deem fit. This will reduce burnout and increase productivity.
Self-care leave will also destigmatize menstruation: The names menstrual leave and self-care leave will also destigmatize menstruation and self-care respectively. Further, employers should be made to implement a stringent diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) framework.
Safeguards menstruators in the unorganized sector: A formal menstrual leave policy in the organized sector can act as a catalyst in safeguarding menstruators in the unorganized sector too.
My opinion:
The question of whether there should be a menstrual leave policy for both private and government sectors is a complex one, and there are arguments both in favor of and against such a policy. On the one hand, proponents of menstrual leave argue that it would help to address the significant challenges and discomforts that many women face during their menstrual cycles. Menstrual pain, fatigue, and other symptoms can be debilitating, and having the option to take time off from work to rest and recover could help to improve women's health and well-being. Moreover, proponents of menstrual leave argue that it would help to reduce the stigma surrounding menstruation and would recognize the importance of women's reproductive health. By acknowledging the challenges that women face during their menstrual cycles and providing a policy that allows them to take time off from work without fear of negative consequences, society could take an important step toward gender equality. On the other hand, opponents of menstrual leave argue that such a policy could be difficult to implement and could lead to discrimination against women in the workplace. If employers view women as being more likely to take time off for menstrual leave, they may be less likely to hire or promote women, which could perpetuate gender inequality. Additionally, some argue that menstrual leave could be seen as a special privilege for women, which could further entrench gender stereotypes and discrimination. Ultimately, the question of whether there should be a menstrual leave policy for both private and government sectors is a complex one that requires careful consideration of both the potential benefits and drawbacks. It's important to have discussions about how to support women's health and well-being while also ensuring that such policies are implemented in a way that promotes gender equality and doesn't reinforce harmful stereotypes.
Did you know?
“Female sugarcane cutters surgically remove their uteri to secure work”
- In Maharashtra’s Beed district, contractors in the sugarcane industry do not hire anyone who menstruates. More than 10,000 female sugarcane cutters have had to surgically remove their uteri to secure work. Most of them are in their twenties and thirties and now experience various post-surgery health complications. Such exploitation is a human rights violation.
