UK menopause law

The trial of 'menopause leave' was rejected despite serious concerns about women being forced out of work.

The law would have allowed menopause to be seen as a “protected characteristic” under the Equality Act. The Women and Equalities Committee called for menopause to be seen as a protected characteristic like race or religion under the Equality Act. That’s despite the biggest study yet into menopause awareness finding most women associate it with just five symptoms. The report found that a lack of support forced women out of work and gave 12 recommendations for giving working women more rights. The Committee also called for trialling “menopause leave” for any women experiencing painful or uncomfortable symptoms. [a survey of 2,000 women](https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/jan/17/more-than-1m-uk-women-could-quit-their-jobs-through-lack-of-menopause-support) across the UK aged 45 to 67 suffering from menopause symptoms, found that a lack of support was having a direct impact on their choice to leave the workplace – it was feared up to 1 million women in the UK could be impacted by this.

The Government's decision to reject the proposal has been questioned by some of its own MPs and raised questions over whether it is 'committed' to caring ...

Or for reasons such as surgery to remove the ovaries (oophorectomy) or the uterus (hysterectomy), cancer treatments like chemotherapy, or a genetic reason." The NHS says the menopause occurs "when your periods stop due to lower hormone levels. In a letter to the Health Minister she wrote how "very little new work ahs been committed to by the government" and said she was worried that the "significant evidence base" was being ignored.

Were ministers right to reject a trial of a specific menopause leave policy for women or would such a measure help some women going through the change?

Hormone replacement therapy is one way of treating the symptoms. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. [Did they make the right call? It restores the levels of female hormones, bringing relief to hundreds of thousands of women each year. Tory MP Miss Nokes said: 'This belated response to our report is a missed opportunity to protect vast numbers of talented and experienced women from leaving the workforce, and leaves me unconvinced that menopause is a Government priority. In the letter, the committee said it is 'extremely disappointing that the Menopause Taskforce has not met since prior to the summer recess, and that the industry roundtable on HRT supplies has been delayed a number of times'. With 4.5million women aged 50-64 currently in employment, the report emphasises the scale of the problem facing 'individuals, the economy and society'. It is a normal part of ageing and caused by levels of the sex hormone oestrogen dropping. Though the Government said it has accepted, or partly accepted, in principle six of the recommendations, it comes under criticism from the committee for not actually committing to any new work in response to the report. In a report in July, the committee said the UK's lack of action on menopause support has left the economy 'haemorrhaging talent' with women quitting their jobs due to a lack of support. It also said that the current law does not sufficiently protect women experiencing menopause and does not offer proper redress to those who suffer menopause-related discrimination. The Government also shot down another recommendation by the Women and Equalities Committee to make menopause a protected characteristic under the Equality Act.

Ministers' decision to reject five key menopause policies constitutes a “missed opportunity” to stop “vast numbers of talented and experienced” women from ...

“For far too long women suffering menopausal symptoms have been forced out of jobs.” I had two accidents while driving - the menopause was partly to blame. I was not thinking right." Suddenly I would get hot and it would feel like I was going to faint. The main symptom for me was being overwhelmed. The menopause pushed me out of the workplace.

The former model Penny Lancaster has said she feels “deflated” after ministers rejected new legal protections for women with the menopause.

However, the government has rejected the proposal, warning of “unintended consequences which may inadvertently create new forms of discrimination, for example, discrimination risks towards men suffering from long-term medical conditions”. [pushing women](https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/employers-must-implement-policies-on-menopause-bnxtjhh6p) with symptoms out of the workplace. The former model Penny Lancaster has said she feels “deflated” after ministers rejected new legal protections for women with the menopause.