The Menstrual Time Out

We all hate periods. Well, part of the population doesn’t really care because of the lack of a uterus, but those having one, if not hate, definitely don’t like them. In the least, periods are uncomfortable. At its peak, period pain can be as bad as having a heart attack. Yes, you read it right. In 2016, John Guillebaud, professor of reproductive health at University College London, explained that period pain can be as “bad as having a heart attack”.

All our lives, since the age of as early as 10 for some, when girls start menstruating, they are told to keep their pain a secret. Periods are talked about in hushed tones. Health classes in schools are conducted separately for girls and boys. Pads are wrapped up in newspapers or black polythene bags by shopkeepers. Periods are such a taboo topic in India that sisters shy away from brothers and daughters shy away from fathers in even talking about it. When girls are suffering from extreme period pain (called dysmenorrhea) and just can’t get up from their beds, their male family members are told that they’re sick. But is having your period the same as being sick? Does half the population get sick almost every month for 35-45 years of their lives perpetually? Well, if that’s the case, I’m surprised they don’t die from such a chronic illness. What an immune system, really!

The talk about menstrual leaves in offices or schools isn’t some new fad that feminists of today have come up with. Period leaves were first given in 1912 by a government school headmaster in Kerala to its female students during annual examinations allowing them to take the tests at a later stage when absenteeism was noticed due to menstruation. The Bihar government has been giving two days off to its female employees for the same since 1992.

The topic reopened when Lok Sabha MP Ninong Ering tabled the Menstruation Benefit Bill in 2018 proposing two days paid leave to women workers across all sectors and also provide better facilities for the rest of the days at the workplace during their periods. The most recent headline which resurfaced this issue was when Zomato announced a new paid menstrual leave policy for its employees, 35% of whom are women in August, 2020. Zomato received several pats on the back for this move but some people held it as being more regressive than progressive. Well I, for one, think that menstrual leaves should have been made a part of the Indian Constitution’s labour laws a long time ago.

More often than not, workplace rules and employment policies are designed in favour of the patriarchal society which treats its non-male members as second-class citizens and thus, believes that anyone who is not capable of following them, is incompetent. The norms for what is considered to be productive or who is considered to be a liability is defined by men which makes it difficult for other marginalised groups to prove that they are an asset too. This ultimately leads to them being paid less, hired less or being promoted less often in comparison to their male counterparts. It’s not just the case with women asking for period leaves. It is an issue about all people, whether they’re handicapped, transgender or women. The workplace should be accommodating for all and what is considered “normal”, should be revised. Workers in all their diversity need workplaces to acknowledge and accept their differences.

Today, there are hardly any sectors without female employees but when it comes to having even the most basic facilities like clean and hygienic washrooms and sanitation in the workplace, a lot of sectors lag behind due to which menstruating women are forced to take leaves or drop out entirely.

For those who fear that such leaves will only lead to more gender-based differentiation at the workplace due to which women will again be shoved into the background, I would like to ask them- till when are we going to accept these one-size-fits-all capitalist workplaces? Shouldn’t workplaces be designed keeping in mind the optimum productivity and comfort of diverse human bodies and selves? We need to accept that men and women are biologically different but that in no way makes one less competent than the other. Women should not be penalised for their biological framework. If women are expected to simply suffer in silence to conform to this work culture, then we’re only paddling the patriarchy cycle ahead instead of standing up against it. Similarly, if a person uses a wheelchair, his biological anatomy is different from others. This calls for building a ramp at the workplace and not labelling them as incompetent and refusing them employment. Gender blindness is no way to attain gender equality.

The surprising aspect is that today’s workplaces don’t even favour men entirely. Men availing parental leave are also subjected to discrimination and are considered less competent than men who show up to work every day to earn the big billions for these corporations. Therefore, it is important to acknowledge such differences in order to ensure equality at the workplace and not to accept or reject people based on the convenience of a minority niche. So, if someone finds it difficult to be at work due to reasons not under their control (read: biology), then they should simply be allowed to avail the leave. This will not only boost their morale and make them more productive on other days but also increase their loyalty and sincerity towards their work and their workplace.