Dealing with menopause in the workplace

Menopause is becoming a critical workforce consideration. There are obvious impacts caused by menopausal symptoms such as fatigue, anxiety, disrupted sleep and cognitive difficulty which can directly impact productivity, engagement and performance whilst increasing absences and workforce turnover.

However, there are now also possible legal repercussions for your organisation. As of 2027, the Employment Rights Bill will require large organisations to publish Menopause Action Plans, making menopause support a compliance and risk management priority.

Around 13 million people in the UK are peri or postmenopausal, meaning it’s highly likely that individuals within your organisation are already affected. If your organisation isn’t prepared to support those struggling with menopause, it may not only result in a less profitable return and productive working environment, but also legislative breaches. So, it’s time to consider how to implement effective and reliable menopause support for your people.

What is menopause in the workplace?

Menopause is the natural process of a person’s menstrual cycle and fertility coming to an end. It typically occurs for people between the ages of 45–55 and can cause drops in oestrogen and progesterone hormone levels. This can lead to a wide range of physical, emotional and cognitive symptoms.

The menopause transition affects every individual differently. The signs and symptoms vary from person to person and can often be misunderstood, particularly by organisational leadership teams. Many struggling with symptoms do not disclose them due to a stigma or fear of being treated less favourably. This is despite the fact that under the Equality Act 2010, menopausal symptoms can legally qualify as a disability if they substantially impact day-to-day function. This not only leads to physical and mental strain from attempting to fulfil their role whilst suffering, but it can also have a significant impact on your people’s mental health as they suffer in silence.

In time, this can further lower productivity rates, increase the chance of absences and turnover and stretches the capacity of your HR and leadership teams, preventing them from focusing on the success of your organisation.

What are common symptoms of menopause?

There are a range of symptoms that come with menopause, whether it is in the peri or post-menopausal phase. Here are some of the most common symptoms:

• Hot flushes and night sweats

• Insomnia and fatigue

• Cognitive difficulties (“brain fog”)

• Anxiety, mood changes and low confidence

• Joint pain, aches and physical discomfort

• Irregular cycles or heavy bleeding

Not only can these symptoms cause an impact on one’s mental and physical health, it can also undermine an individual’s ability to concentrate, perform tasks, or manage demanding workloads. The CIPD found 67% of people who experience and struggle with menopausal symptoms report a mostly negative impact on work, and over half have been unable to attend work due to symptoms.

Why is supporting menopause at work important?

According to the NHS, 8 out of 10 menopausal people are in work. It is clear to see why menopause support is a key issue for organisations as having that many people at risk can be concerning. This is exemplified by the fact that 1 in 6 who experience symptoms consider leaving their organisation due to a lack of support, with 6% of those leaving their roles entirely.

The issues don’t stop with retention concerns either. It is estimated that UK organisations lose over £200 million annually to lost productivity caused by menopause. Approximately £191 million is lost to absences caused by menopause with presenteeism due to menopausal symptoms leading to a £22 million loss in productivity.

Organisations must work to alleviate these symptoms. Supporting individuals with the symptoms of menopause not only works to improve employee mental health, wellbeing, and performance, but also ensures additional legal compliance. It is for this very reason why it is vital to take a proactive approach to workplace menopause support.

How to help individuals manage menopause in the workplace

To develop a positive strategy to both support and manage menopause in the workplace, there are several factors you must consider:

Educate leadership teams and signpost support:

Understanding and support will often trickle down from leadership and management teams before setting in amongst the remainder of an organisation’s workforce.

Providing HR managers and organisational leaders with the training and knowledge to spot the symptoms of menopause and better understand its impact often results in greater support.

This will often come as part of management training which may be available through a workforce assistance programme. With this, leaders can initiate supportive conversations, cultivate a culture of openness and effectively signpost support.

Evidence shows stigma remains a barrier, with many fearing being discriminated against. Therefore, effective training to break this stigma is key to effective support and legislative compliance.

Strong service offerings:

Some individuals will feel uncomfortable discussing personal issues with leadership teams. They may need to easily access a GP appointment and circumvent NHS wait times for immediate support. Having wellbeing services in place such as access to counselling or a Virtual GP service can afford people a greater standard of wellbeing for improved workplace performance.

Provide reasonable adjustments:

Under the Equality Act, if symptoms affect a person’s ability adjustments must be made where symptoms amount to a disability. Common adjustments include flexible hours, ventilation/fans, quiet spaces, and workload modification.

Address cases individually:

Symptoms vary widely. Tailored support avoids assumptions and ensures adjustments are appropriate and boost the wellbeing, engagement and organisational commitment of an individual.

Review concerns carefully and consistently:

HR and leadership teams need to instil confidence into line managers and key influencers within an organisation to be able to discuss the topic of menopause sensitively and professionally, especially across different genders or seniorities.

Menopause at work policy

The topic of menopause is often overlooked in favour of other workforce wellbeing issues. Doing this fails to account for the fact that menopause can directly lead or contribute to these high priority wellbeing issues. A prime example of this is reports that suggest that 9 in 10 menopausal women struggle with mental health issues. With 72% of individuals who experience menopausal symptoms feeling unsupported at work, a structured policy is now essential for boosting performance, retaining key individuals and reducing organisational risk.

To tackle this, one of the first steps you can take is creating a menopause policy. Here are some factors to include to create a strong menopause policy for your organisation:

Communication guidelines:

Encourage confidential, nonjudgemental discussions about symptoms and support needs among the workforce to ensure effective solutions are found and utilised.

Confidentiality:

Individuals need the security to trust that sensitive information will be handled appropriately and in line with your organisation’s safeguarding standards in order to be provided with and be able to access the support they need.

Understanding and training:

Clear guidance, awareness workshops and leadership training ensure consistency and compliance across your organisation.

How the Employment Rights Bill impacts organisational responsibilities

The Employment Rights Bill represents the most significant shift in menopause-related workplace regulation to date. From April 2027, it will become mandatory for organisations with 250+ people to publish annual Menopause Action Plans, much like Gender Pay Gap reporting.

Menopause support will go from being an optional wellbeing issue that organisations push down their priority list, to a compliance, governance and reputational issue. Action Plans are expected to outline:

• How an organisation is supporting people experiencing menopausal symptoms

• Management and leadership menopause support training and capability reviews

• Reasonable adjustments made and risk reduction measures are actionedreduction measures

• Monitoring and reporting on progress against wellbeing commitments

• In practice, organisations and their HR teams will need to:

• Align with Equality Act 2010 obligations, where menopause symptoms may legally qualify as a disability if they impact an individual’s ability to carry out regular responsibilities and require reasonable adjustments

• Update policies, absence processes, PPE/uniform considerations and workplace environment guidelines

• Produce evidence backed plans for government reporting (similar in visibility to Gender Pay Gap reporting)

• Embed clinically governed support pathways (such as menopause CBT or dedicated helplines available through an Employee Assistance Programme) that demonstrate credible organisational action

Early preparation ensures early intervention and effective support. This protects against legal breaches and repercussions, high HR workloads and minimising of efficiency and reputational risk, particularly as tribunal cases citing menopause continue to rise year on year.

How an EAP can help you support organisations with effective menopause support

Using a clinically accredited Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) which provides a comprehensive service offering with a holistic approach to wellbeing gives organisations a compliant and cost-effective way to support people experiencing menopause. HA | Wisdom Wellbeing recognises the importance of menopause awareness and support in the workplace.

That is why we offer a 24/7 counselling helpline to workforces, available 365-days a year to discuss any wellbeing issue that is concerning them. Alongside this, we also offer a dedicated menopause support line in which can signpost individuals to specialised self-guided menopause CBT in partnership with Rightsteps.

This can help individuals better understand their symptoms, how they are affecting them and their mental health and overcoming negative thoughts to ensure high-performance levels. With confidential support and easy access, your people can feel safe, even when they their mental health is declining.

With expert HR management and support, leadership teams can receive guidance on how to remain legally compliant and make the appropriate adjustments aligned with the Equality Act and ready for the 2026–27 Menopause Action Plan requirements.

With menopausal symptoms affecting 67% of individuals going through peri or post-menopause in the workplace, accessible support is no longer optional, it’s a necessity for safeguarding performance and wellbeing, and an EAP is the ideal, catch all solution.

Conclusion

Menopause is a natural process and can directly and indirectly affect others in the workplace. This is through no fault of the individual and is a natural part of life. This does not mean that those experiencing symptoms of menopause do not require support. Organisations cannot afford to brush this aside any longer, and new legislation will ensure this. Make sure your organisation is prepared by having the correct and most effective support systems in place to not only ensure organisational growth, but also legislative compliance.