Natalie Greenslade’s Post

Some great stats in here but can we please stop referring to / thinking about menstrual health solutions - including menopause - as ‘perks.’ As I understand it - and as it is defined online by numerous sources - ‘corporate perks (aka “perks”), are nice-to-have additions to an employee's salary and benefits package.’ I’ve been in this space for a while, and already we’re combatting issues linked to this perception, such as: 1) short-term, tick-the-box approaches driven by seeing this a ‘trend’ to jump on i.e one-off women’s day workshop with no intention for follow up initiatives 2) Deprioritizing the launch of solutions because they are seen as a ‘nice-to-have’ i.e “if we give women free things (read: menstrual products available in washrooms ), what do we give the men?” Our workplace and school initiatives are successful when our partners recognise that, while these topics are certainly ‘trending,’ this is not a passing ‘trend’ itself. Careful implementation of menstrual product solutions with our carefully designed communications, alongside ongoing educational sessions, feedback and reporting are all necessary to create results. Shout out to all our APAC partners, long-term and new, who are tackling gender and health inequities with a long-term, trend-free approach!

Almost a quarter of UK working women have considered quitting their jobs due to the impact of menopause or menstrual symptoms at work, new research has revealed. Find out how DocHQ has set out to provide a proactive solution to improve the wellbeing of your employees and save on hefty costs. #menopause #womenshealth #businesscosts https://lnkd.in/ddkPAHir

How good that we are opening the conversation about menstrual cycles and menopause, especially in the workplace ♀️ On the latest Wellbeing Provocateur Series I really enjoyed an energetic chat with Tracy Minnoch-Nuku as she shared her personal story that led her to being the passionate menopause expert that she is today 🙌 We discussed midlife, sexy ageing and health span and talked about how workplaces can support women going through the different stages of menopause. Tracy said “What women want more than anything is an understanding of what the problem is. To have their business say we're going to have this conversation, just that changes the culture. Women feel understood that they have a moment occasionally, but still know they’re really good at their job”. Here are the top tips we discussed on how workplaces can support women through all stages of pre to post menopause: 💄Education – what is menopause, what are the symptoms, and how can we support our women 💄Bring in an expert – Tracy has a couple of excellent workshops including MENOPAUSE 101 and MENOPAUSE HEALTH 💄Watch these sessions together – We were super stoked to hear a Wellbeing Lead at Contact Energy screened the live webinar it their cafeteria. What a cool way to raise awareness and have group chats about a topic like this. We ❤️ this! 💄Set up a Teams (Slack or similar) group internally for menopause support so that women can ask questions and share ideas 💄Nominate a menopause champion/s in the workplace – possibly someone who’s gone through the experience (good and bad) 💄In an office environment, women are likely to be challenged with thermogenic issues of heat and cold so provide the option to be able to move around 💄Bathrooms stocked with period support because there can be menstrual challenges as women go through perimenopause 💄Check out the episode on Diary of a CEO with Mindy Pelz – she talks about working with the menstrual cycle and she also speaks to Cynthia Thurlow who goes as far to say as women shouldn't even be working the week before their period! 💄Track your cycle or menopausal symptoms – I’ve noticed a cyclical pattern that the week before my period I really struggle presenting, showing up, giving, facilitating so I try to schedule work that I can do behind the scenes with fewer meetings and working in my comfy pants (ok that’s more like everyday 😆) 💄Reduce the stigma – Nicky and I have open chats about where we're at in our cycles. If it’s close to our cycle and we’re struggling I'll just say let’s leave it for tomorrow. Or like I openly disclosed on the webinar, when you’re ovulating go hard and smash them goals! Don’t miss out on invitations to future Wellbeing Provocateur Webinars, sign up to our newsletter here ▶️ https://lnkd.in/gcE74Y_z #MenopauseAtWork #WorkplaceMenopause #MenopauseAwareness #MenopauseSupport #ReducingtheStigma #WorkplaceWellbeing #InclusiveWorkplace #WellbeingFirst #WellbeingTick

First organisations benefit from menopause standard OXFORD BROOKES University, Virgin Media and the Welsh Parliament are among the organisations that have utilised BSI’s pioneering menopause at work guidance in the year since it was published, helping to support employees experiencing menopause or menstrual health challenges and retain their experience and talent. BSI is now urging all political parties to consider menopause support as a key plank in their manifestos for the 2024 election. BSI, the UK National Standards Body, published the menstruation, menstrual health and menopause in the workplace standard (BS 30416) a year ago. In the year since it has become the most downloaded British Standard of the year, reaching 102 countries. In addition to the standard, in April BSI launched free training to help strengthen organisations’ ability to effectively support employees experiencing menopause, achieving nearly 300 sign ups in its first two months. The guidance was published to help organisations meet the needs of employees experiencing menopause or menstrual health by setting out practical recommendations for workplace adjustments, as well as strategies to sit alongside existing well-being initiatives. Global menopause productivity losses are estimated to already top $150 billion a year and BSI’s own report, entitled Lifting the Second Glass Ceiling, found that 29% of UK women expect to leave work before retirement with 42% expecting this to be due to health or wellbeing, while another fifth specifically cite menopause. The research also found that 75% of UK women want employers to take action to retain older women in the workforce and a fifth of business leaders surveyed in BSI’s Evolving Together: Flourishing in the Age-Diverse Workforce put employers providing support around menopause symptoms as a key priority. BSI is now calling for all political parties to consider including strategies to support people experiencing menopause in their manifestos.

Perimenopause is fu*!ing me up massively. -Heavy bleeding has restarted. -Endless bleeding, after a hiatus of 7.5 months. -Painful cramps. No bloody respite even as the body turned 50 few days back!! Hormones are on a scary ride gone wrong. Mood screwed up totally. Relations with the child, man and even the dog strained to the extent that i do not want to exit from my burrow. And, so, it felt extra soothing, extra healing today to walk on the beach, bare feet, in the rain, with wild waves for company. I had the beach to myself! Sharing this video for you to soak in the sound of the waves. Walking in the rain did not do much to quieten the voices in my head though. I reflected on how we humans who menstruate, reproduce and go through menopause continue to get it rough in all fronts - personal and professional. A report from the 2023 National Women’s Health Survey (link to the report is in comment below) on Australian women’s attitudes to menstrual and menopause leave that I read couple weeks back, underlined two key points: 1) Most Australian women considered it embarrassing to disclose to their employer that they are menstruating or experiencing menopause symptoms. 2) A very high proportion of women believed that employers would use menstrual and menopause leave as an excuse to discriminate against women, and a high proportion believed that coworkers would not be understanding if someone took menstrual or menopause leave. Does it surprise you? Do you see yourself in these two points? I have always been loud about my feelings - at home and in my workplace. Since starting on perimenopause, I preface every tok stori, every workshop, conversation, interview stating my condition and what that looks like. I have seen people being surprised, embarrassed, disdained, smile, light up in solidarity, breathe easy - all kinds of looks... However, there is no denying that talking about the magnificent human body that menstruates, reproduces and goes through menopause remains shrouded in silence largely.... This silence transcends cultures and contexts... * What do you do to break these silences? * What kind of policies and practices related to this does your workplace have? #menopause #perimenopause #menstruation #reproduction #HumanBody #BreakThePatriarchalControl #workplace

Menopause & Menstrual Equity initiatives at workplace: organisations driving towards unlocking Employee Productivity! Since The British Standards Institution (BSI) introduced the Menstruation, Menstrual Health, and Menopause at Workplace Standard (BS 30416) last year, many companies have adopted the guidelines to promote well-being and support staff experiencing menopause or menstrual health challenges. Participating in the BSI standard training session this April has deepened my understanding of how organizations can effectively support employees experiencing menopause and menstrual health challenges in the workplace, ultimately helping businesses retain valuable and experienced talent. Key Highlights: -annual losses in productivity due to menopause is expected to be over $150 billion globally -29% of female workforce anticipate leaving their job before reaching retirement age -20% of this voluntary early retirement is due to menopause -75% of UK women want employers to implement strategies to retain older female workers. -20% of business leaders prioritize menopause support. Let's work towards a more diverse, equitable, and productive future for all! #MenopauseAtWork #Diversity #Inclusion #BSIStandard https://lnkd.in/eBbDk3H3

⁉ Why do businesses need to know about menopause? 😱🩸 Menopause is such a taboo, that it was stated that even 80% of people who menstruate are not aware of what they will go through when they hit menopause. 🤫The silence around menopause does not make it surprising that only 1% of US organisations have a menopause policy. 🤔 💼 But why should businesses be more aware and prepared for menopause? Well, women over 45 represent even 45% of workforce in the US, and 81% of US women aged between 45-54 are in paid employment and many are in leadership roles. In the UK, menopausal women represent 11% of workforce, or to put in numbers, even 3.5 million in UK alone. If we are considering such a huge number of people, we would think that we have our workplaces and procedures in place to support effective and comfortable work.  Therefore, thinking how to deal with menopause should be as organised as any other important procedure.  💚 “Creating a menopause friendly workplace not only enhances talent retention and recruitment, it also reflects a moral commitment to supporting women during this significant life transition and contributes to a more inclusive and empathetic workplace culture,” says April Haberman WHC, Co-Founder of MiDOViA. 🗓Come and join us tomorrow where our founder Petra Salarić will speak with qualified nurse and workplace health and wellbeing professional, Emma Persand RN QN 🇬🇧🇲🇺, certified international women's health coach, speaker, and menstruation and menopause consultant, Pamela Windle She/Her , and media consultant Alenka Ostrihon. ⬇ Link to the event in the comments. #menopause #women #wellbeing #edi #hr #people

Have you recognised the critical importance of supporting employee health during menopause?   The potential impact of menopause on a workforce's productivity and wellbeing can be huge. Many women may be unaware of how their changing physiology during menopause can affect their ability to stay fit and healthy. Research suggests there have been 14million working days lost in the UK because of menopause. Six in 10 menopausal women say it has had a negative impact on their work, and 42% of women consider leaving their job because of it.   Often I see women training in a way that doesn’t align with their changing bodies, working against their physiology, in an attempt to regain their confidence during this time of change. Many women may be doing too much rather than too little, and end up frustrated to find that this does the very opposite of what they want, leading to weight gain and fatigue. Yet exercising correctly, smarter, not harder has been shown to have a positive impact on body composition, mood and can help alleviate many menopausal symptoms.   As a highly skilled coach and personal trainer, I specialise in empowering women to embrace their changing bodies during menopause and reclaim their vitality. I regularly deliver talks to organisations including Thames Valley Police, the Metropolitan Police, BT Group and Labcorp to help them to empower their staff in order to reach their potential.   In my talks I share practical strategies to support your employees' health and wellbeing during this important life stage. From understanding hormonal shifts to implementing tailored training protocols, I help to equip employees with the knowledge and tools to Reset, Recharge and Reclaim their vitality.   Get in touch with me to discuss your menopause in the workplace initiatives and how I can support you with a bespoke talk. https://lnkd.in/eYq9r-5H   #MenopauseEmpowerment #SupportEmployeeHealth #WorkplaceWellness #EmployeeWellbeing #MenopauseSupport #MenopauseAwareness #HRUK #PersonnelManagement #EmployeeHealth #WorkforceProductivity #MenopauseInWorkplace #WomenInLeadership #EmpowermentTalks #MenopauseTalks #VitalityInWork #CIPD #MenopauseCoach #PersonalTrainer

What’s the business case for menopause at work? With an ageing population and women in menopause potentially being in the workplace for 24+ years it is imperative that businesses become more educated and support this stage of life. It’s time to remove the stigma around menopause and reduce the impact it’s having in the workplace. #menopauseawareness #menopausesupport #menopauseeducation