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Menstrual leave is offered in some countries and companies; however, there is a lack of research examining perceptions or effects of the policy. We examined the U.S. public’s (N = 600) perc...

Menstrual leave is an employment policy that allows individuals to take additional paid or unpaid leave from work during menstruation. In recent years, it has been attracting increasing global media and public attention. The motivation behind the promotion of the policy is typically benign, and it is often positioned as being a progressive development in women’s health and rights in the workplace. This chapter argues that the rationale behind this policy makes several exaggerated and incorrect assumptions about the nature, and prevalence of menstrual cycle-related symptoms in the working population. Moreover, menstrual leave policies could reflect, and contribute to, unhealthy and discriminatory practices against women in the workforce. Indeed, sex-specific employment policies such as menstrual leave can easily, albeit unintentionally, reinforce unhelpful and inaccurate societal myths that position ‘all women’ as weaker, less reliable, or more expensive employees than men. The chapter thus concludes that in order to support and improve menstrual health and gender equality in the workplace, it is better to focus on the working conditions and rights of all employees, plus access to good quality reproductive health information and medical treatment, if required.

Women are biologically different from men. They face unique bodily challenges. One of them is their hormonal cycle, commonly known as menstruation. They bear both physical and mental stress during that period. Coping with such stress is more difficult for working women. One the one hand, workplaces are becoming progressively inclusive. More women are joining the workforce and are contributing to the growth of the economy. On the other hand, organizations have not been very sensitive to this unique need of women. During menstruation period, more than work, what women need is rest. But there are no policy initiatives to take care of such a need. This subject has been debated in the parliament, but no law has yet been passed. A law mandating Menstrual Leave or Period Leave in every organization can be a step in the right direction. In this research paper, the authors have tried to find out the opinion of employees about such a leave. This empirical study has been done by selecting samples from Agartala, Bhubaneswar and Raiganj.

Regulations regarding the right to menstrual leave for female workers in Indonesia are regulated in Law No. 13 of 2003 concerning Manpower. This law is the basis for the making of work agreements by every company in Indonesia, both a Fixed Time Work Agreement and an Indefinite Time Work Agreement. The work agreement is the basic principle of the relationship between workers and the company in relation to the type of work, wages, position and termination of employment. Legal protection for female workers in relation to the right to menstrual leave is implemented in article 81 paragraph (1) of Law No. 13 of 2003 concerning Manpower, usually in the form of requiring female workers to come to company clinics and have their conditions checked, if the conditions are declared unable to continue their work on that day, the female workers are given permission to rest at home. If at any time there is a dispute between workers and the company regarding menstrual leave, the dispute Resolution can be done in several ways. First, it can be resolved through negotiation by both parties or what is known as bipartite. If the bipartite settlement does not get satisfactory results for both parties, the case / dispute can be submitted to be resolved in an Industrial Relations Court. Keywords: Dispute Resolution, Female Workers, Legal Protection, Menstrual leave rights

Aims and objectives To investigate self-care behaviours and its predictors for dysmenorrhoea among hospital nurses. Background Dysmenorrhoea is an important issue in hospital nurses for its influence on job performance and quality of patient care. Given the difficulties in reorganising work schedule for taking menstrual leave in Taiwan, it is necessary to improve the comfort level of nurses during menstruation. Design A cross-sectional correlation study using a structured questionnaire. Methods A convenience sampling method was used to select two hospitals in Southern Taiwan, and participants were recruited by random sampling method. Questionnaire used in the study contained personal information, Dysmenorrheic Knowledge Scale, Menstrual Attitude Scale and Dysmenorrheic Self-Care Behavior Scale (DSCBS). Two hundred and ninety-seven participants had experienced dysmenorrhoea in the last six months, with the prevalence rate of 70·7%. Results Results showed the average age of the participants was 30·3 years, and 252 participants (82·4%) self-perceived they were bothered by dysmenorrhoea. The score of DSCBS was 29·9 (±5·3). The results of stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed the predictors of DSCBS included whether the participants (1) were married, (2) had irregular menstruation, (3) had received health education on dysmenorrhoea, (4) visited doctor for dysmenorrhoea, (5) knew they may take menstrual leave and (6) were identified with menstruation as a natural event. The r2 was 18·4%. Conclusions Hospital nurses' self-care behaviour for dysmenorrhoea is suggested to be improved through enhanced peer support and caring. Relevance to clinical practice The prevalence rate of dysmenorrhoea among hospital nurses is high. Most of them take analgesics to reduce pain to return to work. We recommend hospitals to provide women-friendly workplace and empowerment activities to improve the self-care ability and comfort level of nurses during menstruation.