Menopause is a fact of female life, there are no exceptions. It also affects transgender men and some nonbinary people, ovaries are the qualifying factor. For something that impacts half the population directly and the other half indirectly, it is incredible that we know so little about it and are reticent to talk openly about it, especially in our places of work.
There are two key drivers here. Firstly, our historical perception that this is an old and generally white woman’s experience. This is fundamentally untrue. The average age of menopause in the west is 49 to 51 depending on ethnicity. The age we’ll be when experience symptoms is on average between 45 and 55, although we are seeing women starting to experience the early symptoms of anxiety, variable periods, and sleep issues in their early 40s. Lastly 5% of women have their menopause before the age of 45 and 1% before the age of 40. While rare, this includes very young women in their teens and 20s.
Underpinning the outdated stereotypes are historical perceptions of women and our life expectancy. Until the turn of the 20th century, only the lucky few lived long enough to experience menopause. Those who did died shortly after.
It was an end-of-life experience. Women today lead very different lives, unfortunately the language and imaging used to reference us is anchored in the perceptions of a century ago.
Given the average age most women will be when they experience symptoms, they will have at least 20 years of career and almost 40 years of life remaining.
The next key issue is variability. Our places of work and the policies within them are based around uniformity. Women’s reproductive life has expected limits, periods for most – not all – last a week, pregnancy lasts 40 weeks at full term, and maternity leave is 12 months.
Menopause is not standard.
As established the age we experience it varies from woman to woman as does the length of time we experience symptoms for (four to eight years), which symptoms and the severity and impact they have on us and our lives.
It is as unique as our fingerprint.
This means flexibility and awareness, must sit at the heart of any policies, guidelines and support. For many this makes menopause complex and challenging and often something organisations struggle to fit within the existing framework.
If those same organisations wish to attract, nurture and retain some of the most exceptional talent, menopause is a strategic issue which has to be addressed and incorporated into its everyday language.
International Women’s Day and World Menopause Day, do a great job at highlighting menopause and its impact. Too often though they focus purely on support and adjustments. This is critical for each individual woman, but without the understanding of the business imperative, they remain individual days with cake and colour co-ordinated balloons.
The increased focus on female representation in the ‘C’ suite, in particular for those organisations in the FTSE 100 to 350, menopause is an issue that cannot be ignored. We will shortly be seeing the latest FTSE Women Leaders Review published. Unlike in previous years, where there has been a focus purely on numbers, this year we will see how many women hold not only executive positions but how many sit in the coveted top three ie Chairperson, CEO and CFO. No longer will they be able to falsely inflate the gender figures by using female Non-Executive Directors, whose roll it is to advise with no control over the day to day running and culture of the business. A lack of investment in gender equity is about to be laid bare.
If we are to see more women move into the ‘C’ suite in greater numbers, we have to focus not only on nurturing their careers, but ensuring they don’t choose to leave at critical points as well. They include parenting, caring and menopause.
The presence of successful women is not only good business practice, it also assists with the recruitment and ultimately the mentoring and sponsorship of younger women, as they move up through the ranks. It signals that your organisation is a place where women can and do succeed. Women are looking before they even apply for jobs, to see if your organisation is right for them, if it is a place that supports and encourages female ambition.
There really is no downside in supporting women through menopause, it simply requires a different perspective.
About Kate Usher
Kate is an experienced Menopause Coach and gender equity consultant. She works with women and organisations to create simple strategies that enable modern and supportive Menopause conversations. Ensuring women retain their careers and organisations continue to benefit from some of their most brilliant employees.
She is an internationally published author, her book ‘Your Second Phase – reclaiming work and relationships during and after Menopause’ was shortlisted for the Business Book of the Year Award.
