What is a menopause champion? And why do employers need one?

What is a Menopause Champion and how can they benefit your organisation?

You might have heard the term “Menopause Champion” in recent months. It is a relatively new concept and is best described as a peer-to-peer support role in an organisation. The role, typically voluntary, is to act as a ‘listening ear’, a sign-poster and to help embed menopause into the workplace culture. Menopause has been a taboo topic for far too long, much like mental health was. However, nowadays organisations embrace mental health awareness, education, training, support and policy, and many have successfully appointed ‘mental health first aiders’, a peer-to-peer support role. In time, Menopause Champions will be common place in organisations.

In March 2023, Helen Tomlinson was appointed as the UK government’s first ‘National Menopause Employment Champion’. In response to this and following a meeting with Helen, our founder and CEO, Loretta Dignam, has urged the Irish government to follow suit in appointing Ireland’s own National Menopause Employment Champion. See links to national media coverage here. This would be a fantastic follow-on from the Irish Government’s launch of the world’s first nationwide menopause public awareness campaign last year.

So, what is exactly is a ‘Menopause Champion’, and what do they do? A Menopause Champion is an individual within an organization who takes on a dedicated, proactive role in raising awareness, providing support, and driving positive change related to menopause in that organisation. Menopause Champions are especially important in workplaces, where women may often feel they cannot be open about their menopause symptoms. This could be for a multitude of reasons, including embarrassment due to the taboo women face in relation to menopause, or a fear of compromising their image at work with their manager, or fear of being seen as not competent or old or simply ‘past it’.

This is where the Menopause Champion can be highly effective and a great addition to any workforce. Their main goal is to create a supportive and inclusive environment for employees experiencing menopause and perimenopause and to ensure that their organisation both recognises and addresses the specific needs and challenges associated with this natural stage of life. 

A key part of the role of the Menopause Champion is one of advocacy. The Menopause Champion can advocate for improvements in the workplace on behalf of employees in menopause or perimenopause. This could include simple environment changes like better ventilation or air conditioning in offices, and amendments to uniforms, or greater initiatives like counselling supports, training for staff, paid menopause leave, or even providing paid access to menopause specialist clinics, like The Menopause Hub

Why is having a Menopause Champion important? As shown by The Menopause Hub’s own research statistics, 40% of women consider giving up their jobs due to their difficult menopause symptoms. Whereas, 11% of menopausal women actually leave their jobs. It’s clear that a lack of support for menopausal women in the workplace translates directly into a loss of valuable, experienced staff. Not only does that mean women leaving the workforce, but employers will suffer economic losses as a result.

The bottom line is that we need women to remain in the workforce, as we know that diverse and inclusive workforces perform better. Female employees deserve support at all stages of life. We have seen an increase of initiatives in workplaces in relation to fertility, childcare and menstruation, but that support needs to continue through to perimenopause and menopause. Making a Menopause Champion commonplace in businesses is a practical step that companies can take to support their employees. Menopause support for employees makes good business sense, both from an economic and retention viewpoint, and from an employee well-being and productivity perspective. 

And The Menopause Hub Academy offers education and training for employers, providing CPD accredited training specifically for Menopause Champions. Also offered is training for senior leaders / managers & supervisors and HR professionals. This training is available in a blended format (live and self directed e-learning modules) virtually and in person. And for those Menopause Champions, once trained they get to proudly display their Menopause Champion badge.

For more information, contact info@themenopausehub.ie