A lack of employer support for menopause symptoms is pushing “highly skilled and experienced” women out of work, according to the cross-party women and equalities committee. Their report calls on the government to amend the Equality Act to introduce menopause as a protected characteristic and to include a duty on employers to provide reasonable accommodation for menopausal workers. MPs are also urging ministers to remove double prescription charges for estrogen and progesterone as part of hormone replacement therapy (HRT), replacing it with a single charge. With 4.5 million women aged 50-64 currently in work, the report highlights the negative impact of unemployment on the gender pay gap, the pension gap and the numbers in senior leadership positions. Subscribe to First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7am. BST Research has shown that women who experience at least one problematic menopausal symptom are 43% more likely to be out of work by the age of 55 than those without severe symptoms, while Bupa research shows that 900,000 women experiencing menopause have quit their work. The report recommends that a menopause ambassador could produce policy models and disseminate good practice, in collaboration with employers, unions and other stakeholders. It also criticized an “unacceptable” postcode lottery for access to specialist care and recommends that there should be a specialist menopause service in every clinical commissioning group. The report found that stigma, lack of support and discrimination were key factors in women leaving the workplace. that current law does not serve or protect menopausal women. and women felt their doctor was ill-equipped to properly diagnose or treat menopause with women also paying more than they should for prescriptions. It called on the government to launch an immediate consultation on introducing menopause as a protected characteristic, launch a public health campaign on menopause symptoms and pilot a ‘menopause leave’ policy in the public sector. Chair of the women and equalities committee, Caroline Nokes MP, said: “Omitting the menopause as a protected characteristic under the Equality Act is no longer supportable given that 51% of the population will experience menopause. “Menopausal women have been mocked and maligned for far too long. It is time for the government to seize the opportunity to implement change. It’s time to support and celebrate these women.” Colin Davidson, head of employment at Edwards Duthie Shamash and co-chair of the Discrimination Law Association, who gave evidence to the commission, said: “The Government must listen to the commission’s recommendations and act immediately to make menopause a protected characteristic for preventing women from harassment and discrimination at work simply because they are going through a natural part of their life cycle.”
