The political group 'The Left in the European Parliament' has, for the past six months, allowed staff to take three days per month off as part of a menstrual leave policy. Because of the successful results, it is calling on others to follow suit.
The cramps, headaches, back pain and intense mood swings that some women experience while menstruating can make a working day significantly more difficult – and even force some to take sick leave. Introducing menstrual leave would for many women constitute reassurance on such days, but there is no such policy in sight for the time being in Belgium.
Some opponents, including gynaecologists, have argued that women should instead focus on finding the cause of severe menstrual pains and that these sick days could stop them from seeing a doctor. Other opponents feel it would increase inequality in the workplace or discrimination of female employees, while others still fear misuse of the scheme.
Despite these concerns, The Left decided to implement the policy for its secretariat staff six months ago. By doing so, it aimed to improve the well-being of workers by recognising their needs and tackling the stigma associated with menstruation. The group's Secretary General, Francisco Orozco Dopico, said it has so far been a success.
"Roughly half of our staff menstruate, and for some, this can sometimes be challenging," he told The Brussels Times. "Mental and physical health at work is something that we take very seriously and where there are areas we can improve, we are always thinking about how we can achieve this."
No signs of abuse
There was a lot of enthusiasm among colleagues for such a policy so the group decided to trial it in October 2023. It has now been established amongst the other types of medical leave, allowing staff to take up to three days per month without a medical note or to work from home for three extra days per week.
During the trial period, this type of leave was a total of 13 times by six different people out of a workforce of 92. Those who had not used these sick days reported it was because they didn’t need to. "This demonstrates that it is being used on an as-needed basis," Dopico said.
One member of The Left's staff, Anastasia Cojocaru, reported that introducing the policy has had an extremely positive impact: "As someone who had to take sick leave for this issue in the past, this policy has made a significant difference to my working life."
She added that its existence "implies that menstrual pain is being taken seriously and radically reduces the stigma around menstruation," which is one of the main arguments of the pro-menstrual leave camp.
Feelings of guilt remain
While no employee who had used the policy reported experiencing any stigma or negative reaction, four of the 39 surveyed people about the trial did indicate being worried it would increase their workload or negatively impact relationships with colleagues and management.
Dopico stressed that this small proportion of staff who were worried about repercussions "speaks more to the guilt that some women experience in actually taking time off when they need to". The group is therefore working on normalising taking the leave through information sessions, guidance for new staff who join the group, as well as including this leave as part of wider well-being at work measures.
It is also encouraging other political groups and the European Parliament's administration to introduce it. "We would only encourage them to give staff the option to take this leave. It's as simple as trusting women to know what's best for their bodies and their work."
In some countries, such as Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Indonesia, some type of menstrual leave has been in place for decades. Just last year, Spain addressed menstrual leave even more concretely by becoming the first country in Europe to legally allow workers up to five days of menstrual leave per month with a doctor's note.
