#23: How You Can Advocate for Menopause Support in the Workplace

What if you could help create a workplace where women feel seen, supported, and empowered throughout menopause?

Many women spend years navigating hot flashes, brain fog, fatigue, anxiety, sleep disturbances, and other symptoms while continuing to meet the demands of their careers. Yet many organizations still lack the education, resources, and support systems employees need to thrive during this stage of life.

In this episode, I share why Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) can be a powerful way to advocate for meaningful workplace change and provide a practical, step by step framework for starting one within your organization.

Whether you are an employee, manager, Human Resources professional, or organizational leader, this episode will help you understand how a Menopause ERG can improve employee well being while also supporting engagement, retention, and organizational health.

In This Episode You'll Learn

• Why menopause support is becoming a workplace priority

• The impact menopause can have on employee well being, productivity, absenteeism, and retention

• Why many women are not receiving the education and support they need

• How Employee Resource Groups can create connection, education, and advocacy

• A simple 12 step framework for launching a Menopause Employee Resource Group

The Steps to Starting a Menopause Employee Resource Group

1. Identify the need.
2. Gather employee interest.
3. Develop a strong business case.
4. Create a clear mission statement.
5. Find employee champions and supporters.
6. Meet with Human Resources.
7. Secure an executive sponsor.
8. Establish a leadership structure.
9. Set measurable goals.
10. Develop an ERG charter.
11. Launch your Employee Resource Group.
12. Measure results and demonstrate impact.

Simple ERG Framework

Assess
Identify the need and gather employee interest.

Build
Develop your mission, business case, and leadership team.

Launch
Secure leadership approval, recruit members, and promote the group.

Sustain
Deliver ongoing value, measure outcomes, and develop future leaders.

Workplace Resources to Consider

A successful Menopause Employee Resource Group may include resources such as:

• Menopause education sessions

• Workplace accommodations guidance

• Policy templates

• Employee feedback surveys

• Communication guides for employees and leaders

• Privacy and confidentiality guidance

• Menopause symptoms and treatment education

• Menopause myths versus science

• Self advocacy and workplace communication tools

Key Statistics Discussed

Less than 20 percent of OB GYNs receive formal menopause training.

More than 80 percent of women report having only a basic understanding of menopause.

According to the Carrot Menopause in the Workplace Survey:

• 71 percent of respondents used more than 40 working hours as sick time due to menopause symptoms.

• 79 percent said working during menopause is challenging.

• 20 percent have considered leaving the workforce because of their symptoms.

These numbers highlight the importance of creating workplaces where women can continue to contribute, grow, and thrive.

Remember

Menopause is not the end of your career.

With education, advocacy, and organizational support, women can continue to lead, perform, and make meaningful contributions throughout every stage of midlife.

Sometimes meaningful workplace change begins with one person asking an important question:

"What if we created a better way to support women?"

To learn more about our program visit our website at

https://www.happinessinyoucoach.com/menopause-elite-program/

Also, if you are a woman going through peri-menopause, menopause, or post menopause and would like to be a part of our mailing list to stay updated about programs, resources, and more, send a message to ksmith@happinessinyoucoach.com and type in the subject line, e-mail list.

Don’t forget to download and share this podcast with other woman. This allows woman that need support to find this podcast more easily.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Welcome to menopause Breakthrough, the podcast for professional women who want to reclaim their clarity, energy, and balance while navigating perimenopause, menopause, or postmenopause. I'm your host, Katina Smith, your menopause and wellness coach, and I also am a certified functional nutrition practitioner where I use nutrition and lifestyle to support women in this stage of life. I know firsthand how challenging this season can be physically, mentally, and emotionally, and what it's like to feel stressed and maybe even a little burnt out. Here you'll find education, strategies, and encouragement to help you thrive at work, at home, and in life. So let's dive in. Hello my friends, and welcome back to the show. Have you ever said to yourself, I really would love it if I had more support at work while I am going through menopause? Well, many women out there are looking for support in the workplace as they are navigating just the many changes that come with menopause. And they still want to have that sense of belonging and to know that they are still valuable to an organization, although so many things are changing in the body or in their body and really impacting how they show up every day. And you know, just to share a few statistics with you based on a recent study, we know that there is a gap in menopause care because less than 20% of OBGYNs receive formal menopause training, and greater than 80% of women don't have a basic understanding of menopause, which is well more than half of the population of women that are going um through menopause. And when you look at it from a business standpoint, uh 71% of respondents to this survey um use greater than 40 working hours as sick days due to menopause symptoms, and 79% say working during uh menopause is very challenging. And then finally, 20% have considered leaving the workforce because of symptoms. And you know, this should really make us wonder like in this day and age, in 2026, where we are today, like why are we still struggling to support women in the workplace? But you know, I definitely believe there is hope and solutions, and this may require women to begin taking action and advocating, you know, for more support in the workplace. And one way to do this is by creating employee resource groups or like an employee resource group within your organization, and you know, as an employee of a company, you know, you actually have that ability, you know, to take action. And I know it's going to depend on your organization as far as leadership and you know how many women are currently in the organization going through, you know, perimenopause and menopause, but you can, you know, consider women in general when you're doing this, but also this can have an impact on men as well. We often just think women, but you know, spouses and just um other people, you know, loved ones and so forth. So if you're going to move forward with creating an employee resource group um for women going through menopause as a support system within the workplace, um, the first thing to do is really identify the need and really start to ask yourself, you know, what challenge or opportunity or unmet need will this employee resource group um address and who will benefit from it? Um that is the first step. Um, again, you know, it can just be in general um an employee resource group for employees navigating menopause because um again, it can have an impact on men as well. So that's something to keep in mind. And the other um thing you would want to do is gather interest. And this is before you even have that conversation with leadership. Um, you can talk to your colleagues. Um, I remember um, you know, being in the workplace and you know seeing, you know, some of my colleagues fanning and saying things like, oh, I'm having a private summer right now. And you know, for those of you who aren't familiar with the term, it just basically means a woman's having a hot flash. And um, you know, that if you see a woman going through something like that, that's a good opportunity, you know, to start that conversation around, you know, what she's going through and you know, getting um more information about whether or not they would be interested in having an employee resource group to support them in their journey. Um, so really again, it involves just talking um with your colleagues. Um, it doesn't have to be formal, it can be informal conversations. And you might even want to consider creating like a short survey for them to fill out and you know, just really determine how many people are really interested or have the same interest as it relates to um having support um in the workplace when it comes to menopause. Um, because you know, leadership, they're going to want to know that your the interest is not just about what you want, but that there's actually other employees in the workplace that are seeking um that support. And you know, from there, you're going to develop a business case. Um leadership is going to support an employee resource group when there's a clear organizational benefit. And, you know, often, you know, with uh companies, they're going to want to know also how does it um impact productivity, how does it save time, money, and so forth. But um what you want to do though is write out just a clear and uh like a guide on what the purpose of the employee resource group will be, um, what employee needs will be addressed, um, what are the benefits of having that employee resource group, um, as well as just estimating like about how many people will participate, when they will participate, because they're going to want to make sure that it doesn't interfere with um the business and the operations of the organization. Um, and then two, how does it align with um the organization or company's values and goals? Um, you want to consider all that. And, you know, for example, when you think about a menopause support group, um, it might be something where you're providing education and resources, um, and then just having that peer support, um, which can improve employee engagement and just really overall well-being. And, you know, from there, you know, draft a missions um statement for the employee resource group and really find um what we call champions. Um it could be, you know, interested employees, as I stated earlier, to get interest, but um, who would want to be a part of the employee resource group who's going to be on the committee? Um, finding influential leaders like those leaders that can um influence um other leaders to get on board with um the employee resource group. Um, and definitely um always partnering with um human resources um to really just um really have an understanding of like what the company policies are concerning um employee resource groups. Um, some companies don't have them, but this could be an opportunity to create one and work with human resources um on you know developing the guidelines concerning um ERG um employee resource groups for women going through menopause and really understand what that approval process looks like and like what will be those available resources and even budget um opportunities. Like, for example, you might want to have a speaker come in. So a lot of times, in most cases, a speaker is going to want to get paid. So, you know, what the what would the cost be? And are there enough funds, you know, to to pay that speaker? So you want to ask all those questions and you know, get all of that information um straight um for finalizing anything, but um ERG um groups, a lot of them that are already existing, they already a lot of times have a framework in place. But if not, um you would have to create that framework and then um getting a sponsor um from like uh executive leadership um to advocate for the ERG group. Um I did discuss, you know, um talking to leaders, but um a sponsor is going to be someone that is going to advocate for that group um to make sure that it does stay around. And um you want to seek that out because there's been studies that show um that employee resource groups that do um that actually have executive sponsorship tend to uh last uh in the long run or for the long term that are going to be around. Um, and then also um it can help with increasing visibility and um connecting you with other leaders within the organization, and they can also help you um secure resources that you might need. Um and then also you want to you know have the structure, the leadership structure. So you want a chair, um a vice chair, um, also someone who's going to be responsible for like um the events, um, someone responsible for um communication and um you know participation, like all those people who will be involved um in the in the on the committee um um as you're creating the um leadership structure. And then uh establishing goals, making sure that you set measurable goals for the um first year. Like it could look something like um how many people you're going to recruit, like if you're gonna set a goal for 50 people to be um a part of the employee resource group, um, you know, I should say recruiting participants. Um, maybe you're going to host so many events that year or educational events. Um, but you want to make sure that you're writing your goals and you're documenting them, and that you also create a charter that includes like your mission statement, um, your vision, your objectives, um, what the guidelines are to uh participate in the employee resource group, the um leadership structure, like when you're going to meet, like your meeting schedule and like your annual goals. This is where what you would put in your charter. And then, of course, you're going to launch the employee resource group. And this um I think is key because a lot of times uh things like employee resource groups are implemented, but sometimes they're not marketed well, so they don't do well. Um, so you know, you can make sure that they're included in company announcements. Um, you can do like lunch and learns. You might want to have kickoff events or some sort of challenge to make people aware and get them involved. Um, but oh, and two, I would also say um, like maybe even considering having a guest speaker come in to kick it off, um, and just creating just overall networking opportunities, but um launching the ERG group, um, how you do that is very critical and how you market it. And then um, you know, of course, this is really key is how are you going to measure and report those results? So making sure you're tracking, you know, how the uh ERG group is growing, who's attending, you know, getting employee feedback, asking questions, even you know, success stories. Maybe a guest speaker came in and you know provided such great information that was life-changing, you know, so that person might have a story of you know what where they were before and where they are now that can show that there is a great benefit to having this employee resource group. Um, and really just too, like um the business impact, you know, are employees more productive as a result. Sometimes this can be a little tricky because um, you know, productivity is measurable depending on what you uh are measuring, but sometimes it's not always possible to measure productivity because a person may feel that they are more productive than they were before in terms of how they feel when they're at work and you know what they're getting done. So um again, that would I guess go back to the success stories and how um the employee resource group is uh influencing or having an impact on an individual um as they are participating in it. Um, but really, you know, I would say sharing results, it really helps maintain uh leadership support. So again, that's why this is so important. So, you know, for women out there, you know, going through menopause and you want more support in the workplace, um, employee resource groups, um, that is one avenue that you can take that is going to be very beneficial to many women, but also just helping women thrive at work uh during this season of life. Well, my friends, that is all for this episode. Thanks so much for joining me today, and I look forward to chatting with you soon. Bye for now. Thank you for listening to Mentipod's Breakthrough. If this episode resonated with you, don't forget to hit the follow button so you never miss a new conversation. Share it with a friend, colleague, or anyone who could benefit from support during this season of life. You can connect with me, access more resources, git tips, and coaching support, and learn about our menopause program for women by visiting www.happiness in you coach.com dash menopause dash elite dash program forward slash. Remember, you don't have to just survive menopause. You can thrive through it. And you are not alone in this season of life.