According to me, menstruators should most definitely get paid menstrual leaves. Menstruation and the various symptoms of it are entirely biological and are neither in the person’s control nor to their liking or dismay.
According to many research studies, it has been successfully proven that some of the menstruators have a menstrual disorder called ‘dysmenorrhea‘; it means a difficult or painful period, which is so severe, in most cases, that regular activities such as getting up from the bed may also seem unbearable and exhausting.
A characteristic manifestation of dysmenorrhea is an extremely painful period or menstrual cramps – menstrual cramps have been proven to be as agonizing and unpleasant as heart attacks, so severe period cramps cannot even be described.
Keeping aside dysmenorrhea, menstruation burdens fellow menstruators with hormonal imbalances too, hence, the mood disturbances, irritability and restlessness, fatigue and insomnia, headache, cravings, tender or sore breasts, diarrhoea, constipation (pretty weird combination, right? But it’s true), low-back pain, anxiety and depression.
This discomfort does not always occur only during an ongoing episode but sometimes also before menstruation begins (Premenstrual Syndrome or PMS). The symptoms felt during this period of PMS and menstruation is used against menstruators and it worsens the stereotypes, glass ceilings already present in the workplace.
So, menstruators go through this discomfort years after years, on a monthly basis for a good 10 days at least, including during the period of PMS. It is also very important to remember that a lot of menstruators have certain medical conditions associated with menstruation like Poly-cystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), Endometriosis, Fibroids, Menorrhagia, Pelvic Inflammatory Disease.
It gets really burdensome for them to deal with this and they strictly require a leave, at least for the sake of humanity. Just reading about it sounds like menstruation is pretty exhausting and troublesome, right?
Well, it absolutely is! It is a hotchpotch of everything that you did not ask for but got it, anyway. Thus, the dire need for menstrual needs. Now coming to, “why should it be a paid menstrual leave?”
If our work laws were a little more liberal and flexible, there would have been a higher possibility of work-from-home scenarios, in lieu of working from 9:00 AM in the morning to 5:00 pm in traditional workplaces. In fact, the efficiency level has been confirmed to be comparatively low in the latter.
If there was a marked presence of work-from-home scenarios, the need for paid menstrual leave would not have been so crucial, since, at one’s own place, it is a lot more comfortable and convenient, unlike in traditional workspaces, where it is only uncomfortable and problematic in every way.
But even in the long-run, denying someone paid leave for something that is neither planned nor an accident but just the work of biology, seems pretty mindless and ignorant.
Nevertheless, a more prime argument for paid menstrual leave is the fact that all menstruators do not come from affluent backgrounds. Many come from adverse situations and or are living in such situations, so they are not in a position to take a day or two’s leave and lose out on their salary or daily wage.
India has five percent of its 1.3 billion people population living in extreme poverty and below the poverty line. The states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Manipur and Jharkhand fall under the category of the poorest states in India. Women and other fellow menstruators make up for the majority of the 5% of people living in difficult conditions. Hence, the urgent need for paid menstrual leaves. It is a human right to live a dignified life, be treated with respect and work in favourable conditions.
Companies in Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and a lot of other South-East Asian countries are providing their employees paid menstrual leaves but; this has been only offered to females. Although this is a great initiative and an example setter for other countries, the leave is not very inclusive as it should be since we are in the era of third-wave feminism, which is all about inclusivity and embracing different people. It is all about bridging up the already existing gaps in the world and doing away with discrimination.
Menstruators should be able to access paid menstrual leaves and as encouraging and empowering it should and will be, there will be a lot of dirty politics and worsening of stereotypes, gender discrimination and equality. But, the important thing to remember is, the fight against gender inequality will not be won if we do not acknowledge the differences between different genders.
How can one achieve equality if we just disregard the reality of the situation, if something is biological, it is usually out of our hands and in this case, menstruation really is, so being blind to the truth will not help in our battle against gender inequality.
Equality is not always about treating everyone in the same way regardless of their various needs and requirements. We are human beings and each one is different yet similar in some ways, so sometimes equality should be about treating people in such a way that the outcome for each person can be same; which is appropriate assistance and support to the people with different needs (here paid menstrual leave for at least three days every month) to ensure that this assistance will help them achieve similar outcomes like everyone else ( here cis-heterosexual men employees).
Menstruators are biologically different and it is high time we accept it, embrace it and treat it like a process that brings discomfort and not like an impure cursed taboo that should not be talked about but taken advantage of against menstruators.
If something is duly taken advantage of to keep certain sections of humans oppressed, I do not see why we should not stand up against it and fight for it, instead of just let things be because that is how it has been.
If maternity and paternity leaves can exist because of a biological process, I think a paid menstrual leave should definitely exist. Menstruators need to reclaim control of their cycles and the rights that they deserve. If we want a more just and equal world, we really need to accept the truth, that differences exist and they should not be taken advantage of but made peace with so that we can work something out for the collective good in society.
Unless we take a stand for the people at a disadvantage, no change will occur, so I firmly believe that we – menstruators deserve a paid menstrual leave.