For women aged 35+, learning more about perimenopause and menopause and how symptoms could affect you at work can help you talk about and navigate this life stage. It can also be helpful if employers are armed with information and understanding.
Perimenopause and menopause can affect you at work
Data from Aotearoa New Zealand and around the world show that symptoms of menopause affect most women, and many feel that their performance at work is affected.
- A UK survey found that around two-thirds of women report symptoms of menopause that affect their work.
- Nearly half (45%) of surveyed Aotearoa New Zealand women aged 40–60 years had reduced their hours of work to cope with perimenopause or menopause symptoms.
- International evidence shows around one in ten women quit or change jobs because of perimenopause or menopause.
A variety of factors can affect work productivity during perimenopause and menopause
Many women are not aware of the variety of symptoms associated with perimenopause and menopause, particularly the psychological symptoms, which can include fatigue, depression, anxiety, and difficulty concentrating.
A survey of 1,000 Aotearoa New Zealand women aged 40-60 years asked how they felt perimenopause or menopause affected their work. The most described effects were feeling:
- less able to concentrate or remember things, sometimes referred to as ‘brain fog’
- a loss of interest or motivation
- less patient with others
- more stressed
- less confident in their abilities.
Alongside perimenopause and menopause, women at this stage of life often have competing challenges, such as providing care for children or ageing parents or managing other health conditions. Some women may experience discrimination because of their age or noticeable symptoms, which could affect their job satisfaction and productivity.
Challenges at work can be due to multiple factors, and it can be hard for women to identify the main cause.
What can be done to help remove these potential barriers to success?
It’s also interesting to note that a woman’s perception of being less productive at work might not always be the perception of their manager. Some evidence suggests that managers do not always notice the issues with productivity that women may perceive.
More and more information is becoming available for female employees and their employers.
Having a better understanding of these life stages may help women to:
- understand and discuss any challenges they may be having — with friends, family, healthcare providers, colleagues, or managers
- make lifestyle changes that can help with managing symptoms — such as maintaining healthy habits with diet, exercise, and sleep
- seek additional support when needed, for example,
- to discuss potential treatment options or management strategies with a GP, gynaecologist, psychologist, occupational health therapist, or other healthcare provider
- to discuss challenges with a manager and work together to explore ways of supporting workplace productivity.
You can find a wealth of information on the symptoms of perimenopause and menopause on this site.
If menopause symptoms are affecting your work, reach out to your GP or find local doctors who specialise in menopause care at the Australasian Menopause Society.
Good information can support employers to:
- open channels of communication so that women can discuss challenges
- explore ways to support women in this life stage, for example, by providing flexible hours, work-from-home options, extra leave, uniform options, temperature adjustments, and emotional/mental health support
- identify and remedy any areas of discrimination
- help prevent women from leaving jobs, avoiding the time and costs associated with replacing an employee.
Employers can learn more about supporting menopausal women in the workplace in the University of Otago’s Menopause Support Guide for Managers.
