Make menopause action plans compulsory for large firms, say MPs

Large employers should be required to offer menopause ‘action plans’ to employees and women should have a ‘menopause health check’ when they hit the age of 40, MPs have recommended.

A ‘Manifesto for Menopause’ was published by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Menopause to coincide with this week’s World Menopause Day on Wednesday (18 October).

The MPs recommended that menopause be integrated into the free NHS Health Check, which is offered to people aged over 40. The group highlighted that a large number of women come into primary care from the age of 40 with menopausal symptoms, yet are unaware they are experiencing perimenopause or menopause.

Clinicians, they argued, often fail to recognise these symptoms, too. “Discussion and diagnosis must be incorporated into the free NHS Health Check that women over 40 are eligible for every five years,” the manifesto recommended.

On employer support, the MPs said companies employing more than 250 people should be mandated to introduce menopause action plans to support female employees experiencing the condition.

There should also be specific guidance for small and medium-sized enterprises to support employees, plus tax incentives introduced to encourage companies to integrate menopause support into occupational health, the MPs recommended.

“With one in 10 women leaving their jobs due to menopause symptoms and thousands more reducing their hours and avoiding promotion, action must be taken to address the serious impact menopause can have on women’s economic participation,” the APPG said.

“Encouraging employers to support their staff would enable businesses to retain loyal and experienced members of their workforce, boost the economy and give women the confidence to progress in their careers.”

The manifesto also called for a national formulary for HRT, more incentives for GPs to diagnose the condition better, the licensing of female-specific testosterone, more funding for research, and a review to improve specialist care provision.

At the same time, the group published findings from a survey of more 2,000 women. This found that almost all (96%) of the menopausal women surveyed said their quality of life suffered as a result of their symptoms, and almost half (50%) took more than a year to realise they might be perimenopausal or menopausal.

Only 12% had been diagnosed by a healthcare professional, with 60% discovering they might be menopausal through their own research. Equally worrying, just 24% said they had had a positive GP experience.

Of working women, nearly two-thirds (64%) said menopause had negatively affected them at work, yet as few as 29% of their employers had a menopause policy.

APPG chair Carolyn Harris MP said: “While there have been some major successes, such as the cut to HRT prescription costs, we still have many hurdles to tackle to ensure women suffering through menopause get the support they deserve. Day-in-day-out I hear stories from women who can’t get a diagnosis from their GP, who can’t get HRT due to a lack of supply, who have left their jobs due to a lack of support, or who simply don’t know where to turn for help.

“With an election expected next year, we are calling for all political parties to commit to these reforms in their own election manifestos, and change the way menopause is treated by the next government. This can’t go on and the time for action is now,” she added.

Separately, a survey by Instaprint, again for World Menopause Day, has found that 31% of women polled believe menopause or menstruation negatively affects their work.

Almost one in five also believed their employer did not support menopause or menstruation at all. More than half of women believed they have or might have been held back at work by menopause and or menstruation, it added.