Spain has recently legalised menstrual leave, with parts of France following suit. The initiative will sooner or later reach Lithuania, say the reps of trade union and employers.
A town north of Paris has recently introduced so-called menstrual days off – women working in the village have the right to take two days off if they present a doctor's note.
"Knowing that 1 in 10 women of childbearing age suffer from endometriosis and 1 in 2 say they suffer from painful periods, the mayor said that nothing is being done to try to improve their daily routine," said Goda Klimavičiūtė, LRT RADIO contributor in France.
Although this initiative may spread more widely in France, it has received mixed reactions.
"Even the feminist associations that have taken part in the debate fear that such leave will lead to discrimination against women in employment. One feminist activist, for example, thinks that menstrual leave [...] obscures the need to create a shared vision of women's health in the workplace," said Klimavičiūtė.
The move was also controversial in Spain, which adopted a law on February 16 granting paid medical leave to women suffering from severe menstrual pain. UGT, one of Spain’s largest trade unions, also warned the move could stigmatise women in the workplace and favour the employment of men.
Birutė Sabatauskaitė, Lithuania’s Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson, said that menstrual leave should not be used as an excuse to discriminate against women.
"Certain working conditions, whether it is the rights of people with disabilities or ensuring the rights of women and men in the workplace, are not a reason to discriminate," she said.
Although the discussion about menstrual leave may raise eyebrows today, sooner or later it will have to be discussed, said Danas Arlauskas, director general of the Lithuanian Employers' Confederation.
"It will come as a shock to some employers – it is a cultural thing. But everyone gets used to everything," he said. "Whether we want it or not, we will have to be completely open. There will be questions: how many days, who will determine whether there will be any abuse."
He compares menstrual leave to paternity leave – the latter was only recently legalised in Lithuania and is now accepted in many workplaces.
"It's a question of cultural change – how soon we will have a completely different cultural understanding," Arlauskas said.
But menstrual leave is not just about a woman's well-being, according to Inga Ruginienė, chair of the Lithuanian Confederation of Trade Unions. It also touches on occupational safety.
"If a person feels unwell, and we are all well aware that women feel physically unwell on such days, especially the first days of menstruation, it is in the employer's direct interest to give the day off to such an employee, simply because it is related to the employee's safety and health," she said.
“If a sick person [...] comes to the workplace, this can have very serious consequences, even serious and fatal accidents," Ruginienė added.
The first step could be to introduce health days in employment contracts or to allow workers to take a day off without justification.
"I imagine it's hard for men to understand. But I can't imagine what kind of woman can come to work, especially in a manufacturing company, and stand in front of a conveyor belt, when in fact she can't even stand on her own two feet," said Ruginienė.
Employers not convinced
Arlauskas, the president of the Employers' Confederation, said he was against legalising menstrual leave.
"I think it would create a great confrontation between employers and women. There is no need for this, let's have a cultural and social agreement," he said. "There is no need to rush into this because what works in Spain may not always work in other cultural environments."
While consensus between employer and employee is important, the reality is that employees often fail to reach an agreement with their employer, even on annual leave, according to Ruginienė, chair of the Lithuanian Confederation of Trade Unions.
Sabatauskaitė, Lithuania’s Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson, said any future changes should include personal privacy issues.
"I don't think there should be an obligation for everyone to come out and say: 'I'm on my period now and I'm taking legal sick days’. The law should still protect privacy. When there is sick leave, it is not necessary to give the employer all the details of the reason for the sick leave," said Sabatauskaitė.
The initiative could also encourage society to get rid of taboos and feelings of shame when talking about menstruation, she added.
Newsletter
Every Friday morning.
