The government has rejected a call to introduce menopause leave on a trial basis for women, claiming that it would be “counterproductive” and discriminate against men with long-term medical conditions. Ministers have also dismissed a recommendation to make menopause a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010.  This is a core piece of legislation, which protects people from unlawful discrimination. MPs had previously suggested these changes in response to the outcome of a survey conducted last year. Its results had revealed that one in ten women who had been working had left a job due to their menopausal symptoms, while others had variously considered it necessary to reduce their hours, go part-time or not apply for promotion. The government’s decision to withhold formal support in connection with the menopause is disappointing but not surprising when you consider the results of a study recently conducted by a global women’s healthcare index. This positions the standard of healthcare for women in Britain on a par with that of Kazakhstan and Kosovo. We are shown to have inadequate access to preventative care for women, such as in screening for cancer, diabetes and blood pressure, inadequate diagnosing of causes of pain for women and inadequate access to support for mental health for women. The government’s approach is merely to urge employers to do two things on a purely voluntary basis. Firstly, to be “compassionate and flexible” with respect to workers’ needs associated with the menopause.  Secondly, to implement workplace menopause policies. Only time will tell how employers decide to respond to this. To end on a positive note, however, due to the recent publicity drive in this area, we are already hearing of employers electing to run menopause awareness training, adopt menopause policies and appoint menopause champions. We applaud the good employers who are choosing to be proactive in this area, to the clear benefit of their staff and their workplaces.