By NUSRAT ZEBA
April 3, 2017
“Despite this reasoning for having menstrual leave, many women believe a menstrual leave is unnecessary, causes more gender inequality and is even detrimental to women’s careers.”
Although menstruation is a part of life for women, it is a different experience for several. While some women aren’t affected by it too much, others struggle with its burden. With this in mind, several discussions surround menstrual leave for women have developed around the world.
Let’s say you’re at work and you feel nauseous, you’re on the verge of vomiting your breakfast and your stomach isn’t making your situation any better!
It’s that time of the month and you’re one of the women who face serious dysmenorrhea (refers to pain experienced during menstruation). As a woman, it is only fair for you to take time off from work or school to recover from your menstrual problems.
With paid menstrual leave on the rise in various different countries ranging from Japan to Italy, many women in countries without menstrual leave are demanding it.
Many women suffer from immense menstrual pain to the point where they can’t get up out of their beds because every little vibration causes them an intense amount of pain. Some women even face other more serious problems such as vomiting, nausea, depression to name a few. For these women, menstrual leave would be a blessing.
With paid menstrual leave on the rise in various different countries ranging from Japan to Italy, many women in countries without menstrual leave are demanding it.
In a study conducted by students of Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria Policlinico in which hundreds of women were researched, about 40% of the women had depression, headaches or acne during their periods while about 10 and 20% of the women mentioned they had vomiting/nausea, and lack of appetite. When a person has a lack of appetite, they tend to skip meals. Because of these symptoms, their school, social and work performances reduced by almost half.
It is universally known that if someone is not mentally or physically well, they must take care of their health before they can take on other important tasks.
Despite this reasoning for having menstrual leave, many women believe a menstrual leave is unnecessary, causes more gender inequality and is even detrimental to women’s careers.
Women who have less severe pain can deal with cramps and are less likely to take days off from work. Women believe that these women would be considered ‘tough’ for working while on menstruation leave (Crocker). However, the severity of a woman’s pain does not determine how strong that woman is.
Inequality between men and women still exist but will only rise because of a menstrual leave policy. Men take less days off from work, which is why they are considered reliable in the workplace.
Amelia Costigan believes women will be seen as less competent in the workplace as a result of the policy. Still now, women are seen as incompetent for having maternity leave. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, one out of four women are outright fired during their maternity leaves. The same situation could be applied to women on menstrual leave (Zillman).
Though women are prone to more inequality in the workforce for menstrual leave, women who suffer from severe dysmenorrhea should have days off from work.
Taking days off from work because of menstruation does not make a woman less strong or less capable. Women are just as capable, if not more competent, of working hard and in the workplace as men because they can perform just as well while going through painful bodily functions such as their period.
