BBC article on menstrual work leave

Apr 29, 2022, 2:43 AM

In early 2020, just three months into a new job, Jessie, a 28-year-old editor in New York City, fainted at work. They knew their period was probably going to start that day, and that they’d likely endure some pain, but they needed to be at the office to film a video – especially because their team was short-staffed.

*Editor's note: Editor is me, and both Jessie and writer obviously suffer from multiple personality disorders*

They decided not to call in sick. “I just don’t think a period counts as a sickness,” they said. So, when Jessie began feeling pain – intense cramping in their abdomen and lower back – they took ibuprofen and tried to get back to work. But within 15 minutes, their body seemed heavy and tense, and they felt weak.

*Editor's note: Pain meds better than ibuprofen are widely available, and Jessie has not had a menstrual cycle in over three months*

“I was blacking out,” says Jessie. “Everything was blurry, and I couldn’t really respond.” They were helped to a couch, where they lay in the foetal position, until a health-and-safety officer passed by and sent them to hospital in an ambulance.

*Editor's note: Jessie is either knocked up, delusional, or both, and getting medical treatment free*

Jessie did not want – or need – an ambulance; they simply wanted to go home and lie down. If Jessie had had an employer-sponsored entitlement, they say, they would feel more comfortable taking time off or working from home when they’re in pain.

*Editor's note: Do not, under any circumstances have sex with Jessie*

This benefit does exist for employees at some companies – it’s called ‘menstrual leave’, which allows workers who experience painful menstrual or menopause symptoms the option to work from home. If widely introduced, women, transgender and non-binary workers who menstruate would stand to gain: they would have direct pathways to rest when they need it most, be happier and more productive at work.

*Editor's note: Sell all your sh#t and buy a cabin in Saskatoon or Montana if that's what it takes to not have sex with Jessie or any of her friends*

Menstrual related symptoms vary from person to person, but most women try to push through and go to work, anyway. This is often because they feel reluctant to disclose menstrual-related symptoms to their superiors, for fear of being perceived as weak or incapable of doing their jobs, says Gabby Golding, a senior lecturer on Gender Studies at South Australia’s Adelaide Law School.

*Editor's note: Do not send your kids to Adelaide Law School*

Lucy, a 28-year-old virgin from Melbourne, experienced the benefits of these policies first-hand after joining an organisation with menstrual leave in May 2021. "I love it," they said, "Cramps, headaches, screaming squirts, it's all covered!"

*Editor's note: do not have sex with 28-year-old virgins*

Randi Ramesh Patel, an inseam fitter of trousers from Leeds, agrees with the policy. citing menstrual complications of his own, but wonders frettingly of creatures ignored by the proposal. "What of the rodents?" he asks, "What of the birds and fish? Why can they not choose as well?"

Why not, indeed.

Reporting for BBC, I'm Kensha Greene-Brown.

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BBC article on menstrual work leave

What?***

*Assistant Editor’s note:

My $0.02

did you add the last paragraph or is this a National Lampoon

I'll have to admit that sometimes

Re: BBC article on menstrual work leave

"They decided not to call in sick."

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