Many women struggle with the menopause at work. Learn about the menopause at work, what employers can do and how advertisers can fight the stigma in this blog.
Women shouldn’t struggle in silence as they work through the menopause. Here’s everything you need to know about coping with the menopause at work, along with how employers and advertisers can help.
What is the menopause?
The menopause officials refers to a woman’s final menstrual period. But when people talk about the menopause, they usually mean the symptoms that can happen before and after this. Symptoms like sweating, flushing and mood swings are all common.
Menopause can affect women differently. One study, for example, suggested that Black women enter menopause around 2 years earlier than White women and may experience symptoms for longer.
Here is a Menopause factsheet courtesy of the My Menopause Centre:
How can workplaces help women cope with menopause?
Education, and open conversations about menopause, are key ways in which women can advocate for themselves at work. Our 4Talk panel from our session, The Menopause in Colour, discussed a few ways in which women can cope with the menopause at work by understanding themselves and their bodies.
Pamela Windle, Founder of Smarter Change, highlighted that there’s no one way to go through menopause: “There isn’t a one-size-fits-all for everybody. It’s about you and your unique journey into this phase.”
It’s therefore important for women to feel confident in understanding their own symptoms. Dr Tonye Wokoma, a registered Menopause Specialist at My Menopause Centre, pointed out that not understanding symptoms can cause women to panic. However, when women understand what’s going on, they’re better equipped to seek help or discuss menopause at work: She described “arming ourselves with the information and then starting that conversation, being brave and putting ourselves out there,” as a way of spreading awareness of menopause at work.
Being proactive was also seen as a way for women to cope with menopause at work. Maria St Louis, Agency Sales Manager at Channel 4, encouraged women to “have those brave conversations” in the workplace, particularly with male co-workers and managers.
Having the confidence to speak about menopause symptoms can also help women find better treatment outside of the workplace, too. Tanya Joseph, Group Managing Director at Hill + Knowlton Strategies and WACL Exec Member, said that “women should have higher expectations of the care that [they] receive.” She encouraged others to offer recognition and sympathy as a way of supporting women struggling with the menopause at work.
How advertisers can help menopausal women
Stigma around menopause can make it harder for women to find support at work. Research by My Menopause Centre and Britain Thinks found that 47% of people believe menopause is still an unspoken topic - but could advertising break the ice?
Tanya Joseph argued that advertisers can change people’s ideas about menopause. “The comms and advertising sector . . . has a massive part to play in how it shapes our thinking, it shapes our culture. It’s about realising that older women . . . are vibrant, we’re economically active, we have money and time.”
Maria St Louis also talked about the importance of the advertising industry fostering a supportive workplace environment: “Broadcasters and all other organisations in all other industries need to be listening to all of their staff. We all deserve to be empowered [and] represented.”
She advised that broadcasters and advertising agencies replicate the representation they show on-screen inside their organisations. Businesses should think about what they can do to “ensure there’s full representation within each level of [their] organisation”, which would help give women role models at work.
Representative advertising, along with more open conversations around menopause, could also help educate colleagues about how to support menopausal women at work. For Pamela Windle, “some knowledge and understanding will go a long way.” And when in doubt about how best to support a colleague? “Ask her: what does she need?”
For more information about menopause and how it affects Black women, watch our full talk, “The Menopause in Colour” on demand now.