Irish workplaces face ‘an exodus’ of female staff, after new research revealed the vast majority of women going through the menopause aren’t getting the help they need to keep them in their jobs.
In the poll of more than 1,000 women, just over 36% of respondents said they have been forced to call in sick on account of ‘devastating’ symptoms.
And 81% who took part in the ‘Menopause in the Workplace Survey 2022’ said they didn’t feel comfortable discussing the issue with their employer.
The online survey of 1,087 women was carried out over the last five weeks by leading treatment provider The Menopause Hub – the first clinic in Ireland solely devoted to helping women through the menopause.
Researchers also found that 38.4% of women who took part in the survey said they were considering quitting their jobs because of the menopause, while 11% said they were forced to abandon careers after being overwhelmed by symptoms – which can include insomnia, anxiety, migraines, brain fog and fatigue.
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More than 80% admitted menopause had affected their performance and their ability to do their job, and 29.88% said their performance had been "affected a lot".
The Menopause Hub chief Loretta Dignam said the results of the study showed employers needed to do much more to keep the growing number of female workers going through the menopause in employment.
She added: "Menopause for most women begins in the mid-40s with perimenopause and symptoms may last for seven to ten years. The average age of menopause, when periods stop, is 51. The last census in 2016 showed there were more than 570,000 women aged 45-64 in Ireland, the majority of who are still working.
"This number is set to increase after preliminary results from Census 2022 showed there has been a 7.6% increase in the population in the past six years."
Ms Dignam said the overwhelming majority of women who took part in the survey (94.47%) reported that more training for managers and HR is required. She added: "The solution to supporting menopausal women is through reasonable accommodations and adjustments, which need not cost the earth.
"We could soon see an exodus of female employees from the Irish workforce if employers continue to ignore the problem." Ms Dignam said that under current health and safety legislation, a failure to support menopausal women in the workplace is "simply not acceptable anymore".
She added: "Menopause can have devastating consequences and 10% of the women who took part in our survey said they quit their jobs because their symptoms made it impossible for them to remain in post."
Ms Dignam, who provides training courses for several firms including ESB, Indeed, Lidl Ireland & Northern Ireland, Dublin Bus and Kellogg’s, said all employers should have a menopause policy to encourage employees to discuss the issue with managers.
She said she opened her clinic after feeling isolated by the lack of support she encountered. Based in Mount Merrion, Dublin, The Menopause Hub has treated more than 6,000 women since opening in January 2019. Ms Dignam said: "As our survey showed, three years on, the menopause remains a taboo subject in workplaces across Ireland."
Image: The CEO of menopause treatment provider, The Menopause Hub, Loretta Dignam. Picture Conor McCabe
