Your Next Equality Action Plan Has a Menopause Problem
- 1 day ago
- 8 min read
Updated: 12 hours ago
Written by Joanne Pagett, Midlife Mentor & Strategist
Joanne Pagett is a Women’s Wellness Strategist and Mentor who empowers women to navigate the emotional, physical, and mental transitions of midlife. She helps them rediscover their energy, identity, and joy, and partners with organisations to create supportive, wellbeing-focused environments for women in the workplace.
Before April 2027 turns menopause support from a missed wellbeing note into a legal requirement, organizations need to confront a hard truth, a policy paragraph is not the same as a retention strategy. This article explores why menopause must become a visible, actionable part of every Equality Action Plan now, and how leaders can build systems that protect talent, culture, and compliance before it becomes compulsory.
How to fix it before April 2027 makes it compulsory
Let me be honest with you. When most organizations talk about menopause in the workplace, what they really mean is a paragraph buried on page 14 of a wellbeing policy that nobody has opened since it was uploaded to the intranet in 2021. That's not a menopause strategy. That's a liability shield with a lavender font.
The Employment Rights Act is significantly changing things. From April 2027, Equality Action Plans will be compulsory for employers with 250 or more staff, and menopause must be on the agenda. But what I’m learning is that the most forward-thinking organizations aren't waiting for the legislation. They're already moving. Because the business case isn't just compelling. It's undeniable.
1 in 10 women has left their job because of menopause symptoms. That's not a statistic. That's someone's leadership, experience, and institutional knowledge, gone.
Why menopause policy is no longer optional
We're not talking about a niche issue. Menopause affects around 51% of the global population at some point in their lives, and right now, over 75% of menopausal women are in the workforce. In the UK alone, the fastest-growing demographic in employment is women over 50. These are your senior leaders, your experienced operators, your client relationship holders. The people who know where the bodies are buried and how to build something from scratch.
When you fail to support them through menopause, you don't just lose a person. You lose everything they carry with them. Research from the British Menopause Society has found that 1 in 10 women have left their jobs because of menopause symptoms. The CIPD puts the total figure of women who have left work in the UK at around 900,000. And the cost of replacing a single employee? Somewhere between 50 and 200% of their annual salary, depending on seniority.
When you run those numbers at scale, the argument for proactive menopause support becomes less of an HR nice-to-have and more of a financial imperative.
900,000 women in the UK have left work due to menopause symptoms (CIPD, 2023)
1 in 10 women have left their jobs specifically because of menopause symptoms (British Menopause Society)
75%+ of menopausal women are currently in the workforce
50 to 200% of annual salary, the estimated cost of replacing a single employee (CIPD)
Beyond retention, there's the broader picture. DEI commitments, B Corp frameworks, ESG reporting, and the increasing scrutiny from investors and customers who want to know whether your values live in your actions or just your annual report.
Menopause support sits at the intersection of all of these. Done properly, it doesn't just tick a box. It demonstrates leadership.
Why having a policy is not the same as having a strategy
A document is not a culture. I've reviewed many menopause policies across sectors, and while some are genuinely thoughtful, many share the same fundamental flaw. They were written by someone who had never experienced menopause symptoms in a professional setting, for a leadership team that didn't quite know what to do with the information.
What makes a menopause strategy work is the same thing that makes any people strategy work. It must be specific, visible, and actively owned. That means:
Leadership buy-in that goes beyond signing off on a document
Line managers who are genuinely equipped, not just trained, to avoid saying the wrong thing
Individual women who feel psychologically safe enough to disclose, request adjustments, and stay
Operational teams who aren't forgotten simply because they don't sit at a desk
The menopause section in your Equality Action Plan should do something. It should raise awareness across the whole organization, prevent avoidable exits by addressing symptoms before they become a resignation letter, support retention of your most experienced women, and establish a culture where reasonable adjustments are a normal part of working life, not a special favor. A menopause policy that nobody knows about is not a menopause policy. It's a document.
Why I am the person you want in the room for this
I want to be clear about something. I don't come at this from a theoretical standpoint. I spent years as a corporate Menopause Champion, building workplace menopause policies from the inside. I know what the HR conversations look like. I know where the resistance comes from, the leaders who think it's 'just hormones', the managers who are terrified of saying the wrong thing, the women who have been masking symptoms for so long they've started to believe that suffering in silence is just part of the deal.
I've also lived it. In my mid 30s, I navigated menopause after a hysterectomy while transforming my own health and going on to become a competitive bodybuilder. Not because I had unlimited time and energy, but because I learned what works for women's bodies and minds during this stage of life. That experience, both professional and deeply personal, is what I bring to every organization I work with.
I'm a qualified Menopause Wellness Practitioner, an ICF-certified Life Coach, and an NLP Practitioner. I'm also a multi-award Menopause Coaching Provider and Women’s Menopause Empowerment Excellence winner at the GHP Women’s Health Awards 2025, which, if I'm honest, felt like a particularly gratifying moment of validation that the work matters.
But credentials aside, what I bring to organizations is this, the ability to translate the clinical, the legal, and the operational into something that people understand, believe in, and use. I make the conversation normal, and that's where the real change happens.
What a genuinely useful menopause action plan covers
Before writing a single word of policy, you need to understand where your organization stands. I call this the maturity check, and it covers five key areas:
Policies. Do you have menopause-specific guidance? Is it current, accessible, and known about by the people it's designed to support?
Workforce profile. What percentage of your workforce are women aged 45 to 60? You can't plan for people you haven't counted.
HR capability. Does your HR team have the knowledge and confidence to handle menopause-related conversations sensitively and legally?
Culture. Do women in your organization feel safe enough to disclose symptoms? Or are they more likely to call in sick and say nothing?
Leadership readiness. Are your leaders equipped with the empathy and knowledge to have these conversations, while remaining objective and legally compliant?
Skipping this diagnostic stage is how you end up with a beautiful document that nobody reads. Or as I like to call it, Forest Fodder.
What good looks like across the organization
For leadership teams:
Embed menopause into existing policies, absence, performance, flexible working, and reasonable adjustments
Set meaningful KPIs, retention rates, training completion, champion activity
Appoint a visible, credible Menopause Champion, not just a job title with no brief
Include menopause in DEI reporting and leadership updates
For line managers:
Proper training, not a 20-minute e-learning module they click through on a lunch break, just to get a “tick-in-the-box”
A practical conversations guide, how to open the door, what to say, what not to say
Clear escalation routes, so managers don't feel like they're navigating this alone
For individuals:
Access to coaching and peer support. I work with women who have never spoken about their symptoms at work before our first session. That's the gap we're bridging.
Signposting to clinical resources, GP guidance, and specialist menopause support
Flexible working options discussed proactively, not as a reluctant last resort
For operational and non-office-based teams
This group is frequently forgotten entirely, and it makes me mad! This is where some of the most impactful adjustments can be made. Women on shop floors, in warehouses, in schools, and care homes don't have the luxury of nipping outside to stand next to an open window. Practical support here includes:
Scheduled rest breaks during peak symptom times
Access to fans, cold water, and temperature-regulated spaces
Rota flexibility, where operationally possible
Discreet uniform options, yes, the black cardigan conversation is real, and it matters
One organization I supported introduced a 'no questions asked' five-minute break policy for women in operational roles. It took three weeks to implement. It transformed how those women felt about their employer. Sometimes the smallest things carry the loudest message.
What working with me actually looks like
I work with organizations at every stage, from 'we have absolutely nothing in place' to 'we have a policy, but we know it isn't working'. The diagnostic process I use covers:
An initial scoping call to understand your organization's size, structure, and starting point
A policy and document audit, reviewing what exists, what's missing, and what needs updating to meet the incoming Equality Action Plan requirements
A confidential employee survey or facilitated focus group, or both, designed to surface honest data in a psychologically safe way
A written recommendations report with prioritized next steps, suggested delivery options, and a clear roadmap
From there, we can move into delivery, manager training, individual coaching for women experiencing symptoms at work, Champion community facilitation, or ongoing strategic support as your plan evolves. You don't have to do it all at once. But given that April 2027 is closer than it currently feels, you do have to start.
This is not just a menopause thing, it is a leadership thing
Menopause doesn't sit in a box on its own. It connects directly to your DEI strategy, your psychological safety culture, your leadership pipeline, and, if you're B Corp certified or working towards it, your social impact commitments.
When organizations support women through menopause, they retain experience, deepen inclusion, and demonstrate that their values aren't just framed on a wall somewhere. That's not wellness washing. That's leadership.
The women who built your organization, who held the relationships together during the difficult years, who know your systems, your clients, your culture, are navigating one of the most physiologically and psychologically complex transitions of their lives, often in silence, often alone. And most of them are doing it while delivering at a level that their employers have come to rely on without ever asking how they're truly doing.
The women who built your organization deserve more than a policy buried in an intranet nobody visits. They deserve a workplace that works for them.
Ready to get ahead of the April 2027 requirement?
If you're an HR Director, DEI lead, or senior leader thinking 'we need to get on top of this', that instinct is right. I work with organizations to build menopause strategies that are practical, evidence-based, and put into practice. Not filed away under G for Good Intentions.
Whether you want to start with a diagnostic, run an awareness session for your leadership team, or review and strengthen an existing menopause action plan, I'd love to have that conversation. Email: joanne@joannepagett.co.uk and visit my website.
Read more from Joanne Pagett
Joanne Pagett, Midlife Mentor & Strategist
Joanne Pagett is a Women’s Wellness Strategist and Mentor who helps women navigate the emotional, physical, and mental transitions of midlife. As the founder of The Female Energy P.O.W.E.R System™, she empowers women to rediscover their confidence, energy, and sense of purpose. With over 25 years of corporate experience, Joanne also partners with organisations to create supportive and inclusive wellbeing strategies for women in the workplace. Through her coaching, writing, and workshops, she inspires women to transform midlife from a season of uncertainty into one of strength, clarity, and joy.
