The British Menopause Society very much welcomes the launch of City Hall’s new menopause policy by the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan.
The menopause can have a significant impact on many women. Menopausal symptoms affect more than 75% of women and may last for a number of years with an average duration of seven years. It is estimated that a third of women experience long-term symptoms. It is therefore important that support and advice is available to guide women through the menopause and help them cope with it.
National data show that 70% of women in the UK are in paid employment and that women comprise 47% of the UK workforce. In a BMS national survey 45% of women indicated that they felt their menopause symptoms had a negative impact on their work In addition, over the last 30 years, there has been an increase in the proportion of women aged 55-59 in UK employment from 49% to 69% and for women aged 60-64 from 18% to 41%.
We believe there is an urgent need to raise menopause awareness in the workplace among both managers and staff and hope that other employers would emulate this to help support employees during their menopause transition.
Haitham Hamoda
Chairman, British Menopause Society