JENI O’DOWD: Women should just get on with menopause. They don’t need time off work. It’s not an illness

Remember the days when menopause was something women just got on with?

Now, it’s a branding opportunity. From actor Naomi Watts’s release of a menopause skincare line to fitness trainer Michelle Bridges launching “the menopause method”, we’re seeing a wave of high-profile women turning their hormones into headlines — and, more often than not, profit.

I’m all for women talking openly about a subject which was considered taboo a decade ago. It’s time doctors were more aware of natural ways to reduce symptoms besides just prescribing drugs, and talking about it helps spread knowledge and awareness.

But it’s not just about products and publicity. The menopause movement is creeping into workplace policy, with calls for menopause leave as though hot flushes and mood swings suddenly render women incapable of doing their jobs.

A 2024 Senate inquiry recommended allowing women to request flexible working conditions, sparking debate over whether menopause-specific leave should be introduced.

Some workplaces, including the Victorian Women’s Trust and parts of the Queensland public sector, have already implemented menopause leave, but critics warn it could make employers hesitant to hire or promote women.

Never mind that diet, exercise, and cutting back on alcohol can significantly ease symptoms — because that’s not as glamorous as rebranding mid-life as a crisis in need of corporate intervention.

Menopause is not an illness. It’s not a disability. It’s not a medical emergency. It’s a biological stage that half the population goes through. So why are we suddenly being told that women need time off work because of it?

Proponents argue that severe symptoms can impact performance. Sure. But so can migraines, period pain, bad backs, and broken sleep from a newborn crying all night — and last time I checked, none of those warranted special leave provisions.

If mid-life hormonal changes justify workplace leave, why stop at menopause? Men over 40 experience andropause, a gradual decline in testosterone that can cause fatigue, mood swings, and reduced concentration.

Yet, no one is calling for “andropause leave”. Instead, they manage it — just as women have for centuries.

Women fought for workplace equality, not special carve-outs. Women can’t argue for equal treatment while simultaneously demanding exceptions. If men don’t get andropause leave when their testosterone dips, why do women need a workplace intervention for something manageable?

There’s also another problem with menopause leave — how out of touch it is with the real issues facing women. Women in developing countries don’t have the luxury of taking a paid break because their hormones are fluctuating. Women working casual jobs, on factory floors, or running their own businesses can’t pause their income every time they get sweaty.

Yet here we are, in our comfortable, western, air-conditioned offices, acting like menopause is some insurmountable crisis. It’s not.

And the worst part? Many women making the most noise about menopause aren’t just asking for help — they’re actively making life harder for other women.

Here’s something nobody wants to talk about — some of the most misogynistic people I’ve ever worked with are middle-aged women.

Not men. Not “patriarchy”. Not “toxic masculinity”. Just women.

Specifically, menopausal women in the workplace roll their eyes at young mothers leaving early to pick up their kids, make snide comments about “special treatment” whenever a woman asks for flexibility, and sneer at younger female colleagues, criticising their clothes, attitudes, and ambitions.

You know precisely the type I mean.

They claim to be feminists, but only when it suits them. They’re the first to cry sexism when they don’t get ahead, but they’re also the first to undermine younger women trying to balance careers and families.

For years, we’ve been told that men’s clubs are exclusionary, that men hoard power, and that male leaders don’t support the women coming up behind them. But I’ve seen many middle-aged female bosses openly resent, mock, and dismiss younger women with kids.

Menopause doesn’t make you fragile, but for some women, it does seem to make them meaner.

So maybe, instead of demanding menopause leave, these women should take a step back and ask themselves if they’re actually lifting the next generation of women — or just becoming as bad as the old boys’ club they spent decades complaining about.