Period Leave Policy: let's settle the debate!
When Zomato announced the period leave policy in their company, the feminist in me felt overjoyed by this decision taken towards acknowledging periods in the work space. It felt like finally we have a company unafraid to promote gender equality through such a policy.
But that joy didn’t last long. Soon people on social media started a debate about the necessity of such a leave and if it was in any way discriminatory towards non-menstruating workers.
So, lets settle this once and for all. But first, what exactly is a period leave?
Wikipedia says:
“Menstrual leave is a type of leave where a woman may have the option to take paid or unpaid leave from her employment if she is menstruating and is unable to go to work because of this.”
The concept of menstrual leave started in Japan in the early 20th century. Nike also included menstrual leave in their Code of Conduct in 2007, implemented around the globe wherever they operate. In South Korea, not only are female employees entitled to menstrual leave according to the Article 71 of the Labor Standards Law, but they are also ensured additional pay if they do not take the menstrual leave that they are entitled to.
While some say, period leaves are sexist and criticize women’s work efficiency, some compare this to maternity leave and feel it’s a much-needed policy to make work more flexible for women
Why do we need a Menstrual leave in India?
India has a large women workforce (not as much as men, but that’s a topic for some other day). Even though we have seen some progressive changes in the country, certain issues are still a taboo and not openly discussed. Periods or Menstruation being one of the topics, needs to have its long due conversation.
Different bodies respond differently to the pain and discomfort experienced during menstruation. Given the biological complexities that women go through, it is extremely important that women should be given every right to avail this leave when required.
According to feminismindia.com, “A SECTION OF WOMEN ARE NOT IN FAVOR OF THIS BILL BECAUSE THEY BELIEVE THAT SUCH A LAW WOULD FURTHER THE BIAS AGAINST THEM AT WORKPLACE AND THEY WOULD NEED TO DEAL WITH UNFAIR TREATMENTS IN THE FORM OF HIRING BIAS, LESSER PAYS, SLOWER PROMOTIONS AND LESSER PARTICIPATION IN BOARD MEETINGS THAN ALREADY PREVALENT.”
But this needs to change! One cannot discriminate women on the basis of the biology of their bodies. If women are not included in boardroom meetings or not considered as a deserving candidate for promotion because they have different working conditions one must be reminded that this is not a choice that women make every month. There is already enough bias against women in the workspace, inclusive policies like these will help mitigate this problem.
Work places have different kinds of people with different biological frameworks, why should the policies be ones-size-fit-all? We need to acknowledge the differences but, in the process, we should not stray away from the goal of making the workplace equally comfortable for everyone. Acknowledging differences must not translate into unequal opportunities, we must work towards optimum productivity and reshape the workplace to be an equitable platform.
Women have been taking informal period leaves in the form of sick days allotted to an employee, periods are not a disease, a woman on her period is not sick, women absolutely deserve the chance to take leave on the grounds of menstruation if necessary.
Wrapping up
Period leaves be it paid or unpaid are a personal choice, it aims to benefit women and ease the restrictions placed on them. To women having medical conditions that involve extreme difficulty during periods, this policy is a boon. Women who aren’t much affected by menstrual pain are free to not avail this leave and tend to their work as always.
Menstrual leaves promise a more inclusive work environment and it’s a great deal that a country like ours is stepping in the direction of demolishing taboos and promoting gender equality.
