Written by Barun Garg
In the Winter Session of 2017, Menstruation Benefit was tabled as a private member bill in the Parliament. It sought to provide working women in public as well as the private sector with a paid menstrual leave of two days every month. These benefits were also extended to girl students of 8th class and above in government recognised schools. The bill also sought to provide better facilities for the workplace during menstruation.
As we all know, menstruation is a natural biological process, which ensures that a menstruator’s body is healthy. However, it can sometimes be accompanied by discomfort and severe pain, including nausea, fever, weakness, lack of concentration, tiredness, etc., which might impact women’s performance in the workplace. In fact, few menstruators experience chronic conditions to an extent where they nearly pass out from it.
This justifiably must draw the attention of the government so that even the women employees feel valued. Although not all women indeed experience this pain and discomfort, the majority of them do, which is significant for the government to make a policy decision.
Amendments in labour laws have gained significant momentum, especially for facilitating a better working space for people, especially women. One of the primary demands for working women during menstruation has been the provision of paid leave, resting periods or breaks and appropriate resources to create a women-friendly workspace.
In fact, section 10 of the aforesaid Menstruation Benefit Bill prescribed the punishment for reasons such as denying menstrual leave to a woman, obstructing a woman from availing menstrual leave and denying rest period or recreation facility mentioned under the bill. The punishment prescribed under the bill is for not less than one month but may extend to three months and with a fine of ten thousand rupees which may extend to fifty thousand rupees.
A research study on Dysmenorrhea has stated that “Dysmenorrhea (painful periods) is extremely common, and it may be severe enough to interfere with daily activities in up to 20% of women.” The idea of paid menstrual leaves is not new and seeks its source from the time of the Second World War. Many countries already have the required legislation for paid leaves in place such as Indonesia, South Korea, Taiwan and Japan. In India, Bihar is one of the states which has been giving two-day paid leave to women, calling it “special paid leave”.
Corporates have already stepped in to implement menstrual leave policy in their companies, and many Indian subsidiaries are also considering doing the same. Culture Machine and Gozoop are among the few companies in India which have been giving one-day menstrual leave per month to female employees.
However, from the view of an employer, it is to be noted that menstruation is a reason for the slowing down of productivity due to the discomfort. It stands most pertinent during the first and second day of the menstrual cycle. Hence, an employer should provide relief so that company’s productivity is not hampered and the employee is also satisfied, which forms it a two-way street.
There is certain criticism of the proposal that deals with women’s isolation or exclusion due to such policy. Moreover, it has been overheard during the discussion in the Parliament that this leave’s nature can lead to being misused. Some also complained that the bill denotes menstruation as a sickness rather than as a natural process.
But it will not be wrong to deny that the bill’s positive aspects outweigh the negative aspects, which is why I believe that it should be brought back into consideration again. Different menstruators respond to pain and uneasiness in different ways, depending upon their capacity to bear the pain and their will-power.
Yet, they are expected to perform with efficiency despite such biological complexities attached. Henceforth, it becomes necessary for menstruators to be provided with the right to avail additional leaves during menstruation. Today, there is a great surge in the society and media to contemplate difficulties associated with menstruation and campaign for menstrual leaves. Even if the bill is not passed, there can be a discussion brought up in the Parliament on this issue so that the lawmakers can decide the best solution for the problem, following the footsteps of Bihar!