Menopause policy

Menopause is not itself a protected characteristic, but its symptoms can amount to a disability, the treatment of a woman experiencing them can be sex or age discrimination, and tribunals have found both; the regulator's guidance expects employers to make adjustments and manage absence with that in mind. A policy gives managers the knowledge to have the conversation, sets the adjustments the business will consider, and keeps the absence and performance procedures from being applied in a way that discriminates. I draft the policy for the employer as part of the handbook and core policies for a fixed fee of £995, delivered in five working days.

Who this is for

Employers in England and Wales who want a menopause policy that is more than a statement, and employers who have had an absence or performance issue they realised too late was connected.

What matters in a menopause policy

Why employers are adopting a policy and the law behind it

Menopause affects a large part of the workforce for years, its symptoms (sleep disturbance, fatigue, concentration, anxiety, hot flushes) affect work, and a significant number of women reduce their hours or leave work because of it; the Equality and Human Rights Commission's guidance says that employers have legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010 and the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 that menopause can engage, and that a policy, adjustments and trained managers are how those obligations are met; the policy should state why the business has one and what it commits to, in terms the business will deliver.

The Equality Act and the protections that may apply

Menopause is not a protected characteristic, but symptoms that have a substantial and long-term adverse effect on day-to-day activities can be a disability under section 6 of the Equality Act 2010, engaging the duty to make reasonable adjustments and the protection against discrimination arising from disability; less favourable treatment of a woman because of menopause symptoms can be direct sex or age discrimination, and comments about symptoms can be harassment related to sex or age; the policy should explain this so that managers understand that a complaint about a woman's irritability or absence may be a complaint about a protected characteristic.

Adjustments, absence and the management conversations

The policy should set the adjustments the business will consider (temperature control and ventilation, uniform flexibility, access to toilets and cold water, flexible hours and breaks, homeworking, adjusted duties, time off for appointments, a quiet space), the process for requesting them (a conversation with the manager or HR, occupational health advice where helpful, a record of what was agreed and a review), and the handling of absence: menopause-related absence recorded as such and considered separately when absence triggers are applied, as the reasonable adjustments duty may require, and performance concerns explored for a health cause before a capability process; the conversation is the part managers find hardest and the policy should give them the words.

The health and safety duties and the risk assessment

The employer's duty under section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the risk assessment under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 extend to the effect of the working environment on staff experiencing menopause symptoms (temperature, uniforms, rest facilities, shift patterns, the physical demands of the role), and the policy should say that the risk assessment considers them and that staff can ask for the assessment to be reviewed; the Health and Safety Executive's guidance treats menopause as a workplace health matter, and the policy should too.

Training managers and creating a culture where people ask

A policy nobody uses because nobody will raise the subject achieves nothing, and the policy should commit to training managers on the symptoms, the law, the adjustments and the conversation, to designating a contact (HR, a menopause champion, the employee assistance programme), to allowing staff to raise the subject with someone other than their line manager, and to treating the subject as an ordinary health matter rather than an embarrassment; the policy should also address the position of partners and colleagues of people experiencing menopause and of transgender and non-binary staff, who may experience menopause or its treatment.

Confidentiality, records and the policies alongside

Information about an employee's menopause symptoms is health data under Article 9 of the UK GDPR and the employer's data protection policy applies, with the employee's consent sought before information is shared and records kept only where needed for adjustments; the policy should sit alongside the sickness absence policy (with menopause-related absence treated as the policy provides), the flexible working policy (requests under section 80F of the Employment Rights Act 1996 considered promptly), the equality policy and the anti-harassment policy, and should be reviewed with the regulator's guidance as it develops.

What it costs

Staff handbook and core policies, £995. Five working days.

Employment contract, £595. One template you can reuse for a grade of staff. Five working days.

Buying online forms the engagement on payment. The scope is what the employment contracts and handbooks page describes, you accept the Terms of Service at checkout, and I email you within four working hours to get started. If you would rather ask something first, email me.

What you get

• A bespoke contract drafted for how you employ people
• Restrictive covenants drafted at a scope a court will uphold
• Confidentiality and intellectual property provisions that put ownership where it belongs
• The statutory particulars, so the document does the job section 1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 requires it to do
• Flexibility clauses where you genuinely need them, drafted to survive challenge
• Core policies: disciplinary, grievance, sickness absence, equal opportunities, data protection and, increasingly, AI use
• One round of amendments

What is not included

• Acting for employees
• Employment tribunal representation
• Payroll, pensions auto-enrolment and tax
• Immigration and sponsor licence work
• Day to day HR handling, disciplinaries, grievances and redundancy processes

Questions I am often asked

Is menopause a disability?

Not as such, but symptoms with a substantial and long-term effect on day-to-day activities can be, which engages the duty to make reasonable adjustments. The policy explains when that may apply and what the employer will consider.

An employee's attendance has triggered our absence procedure and she has told us it is menopause-related. What do we do?

Consider the absence separately, as the adjustments duty may require, and discuss adjustments before applying the procedure. A trigger applied mechanically to menopause-related absence is where tribunal claims have succeeded.

Do we have to train managers?

The policy commits to it because a policy without trained managers is not used. The training covers the symptoms, the law, the adjustments and how to have the conversation.

Related guidance and services

• Employment contracts and handbooks, £995, the service this page describes
• Consultancy and contractor agreements, £595
• Sickness absence policy
• Mental health and wellbeing policy

This page is general guidance for businesses in England and Wales, not advice on your own circumstances. Last reviewed: October 2026. Email geoffrey@caesar.co.uk.