How we support your organisation
Menopause affects a large and growing part of the workforce, and symptoms can have a real impact on people's confidence, performance and attendance. The right support keeps experienced people in work, and the Government now recommends practical menopause action from every large employer.
We help you build a menopause-friendly workplace from several angles: clinical assessment of an individual's needs, practical workplace adjustments, a clear policy, and training so managers can have the right conversations.
Our focus is occupational: how symptoms affect work, and what helps. We do not prescribe or replace a person's own GP care – we give you and your employee clear, work-focused advice you can act on.
Meet the clinical team →Equality action plans, and how we help you deliver the menopause actions
Under the Employment Rights Act 2025, employers with 250 or more employees can now publish an equality action plan setting out how they support employees through menopause. The voluntary window is open, and publication is expected to become mandatory from spring 2027. Almost every action the Government recommends is one we already deliver – see the Government's guidance on GOV.UK.
The symptoms, and what they can mean at work
Hormonal changes can affect several body systems at once, in four broad ways.
Thinking & focus
- Brain fog and poor concentration can make long meetings harder.
- Memory lapses and slower recall can cause errors in familiar tasks.
- Difficulty finding words can interrupt conversations and presentations.
After an assessment, we recommend support such as written follow-ups, a quieter workspace, uninterrupted focus time and flexible deadlines.
Mood & confidence
- Anxiety, low mood and mood swings can lead people to step back from visible work.
- Irritability and tension can cause friction with colleagues.
- Loss of confidence can lead people to turn down opportunities or promotion.
Trained managers hold sensitive one-to-one meetings. A confidential clinical assessment sets out the support each person needs.
Sleep & energy
- Disturbed sleep and night waking cause tiredness across shifts and long days.
- Fatigue and low energy can slow the pace of work and increase short-notice absence.
- Reduced alertness is a risk in safety-critical work.
A review of shift patterns, flexible start times and realistic workload planning support people through difficult phases.
Physical symptoms
- Hot flushes and night sweats make temperature, uniform and PPE harder to manage.
- Joint and muscle aches can worsen with repetitive or manual tasks.
- Heavier periods and bladder changes require reliable access to rest and toilet facilities.
A menopause risk assessment identifies adjustments to temperature, uniform, and access to rest and toilet facilities.
Sources: NHS · NICE NG23 · CIPD (2023)
What this looks like in practice
A 44-year-old project manager had been experiencing anxiety, night sweats and disrupted sleep for three months. She had stopped exercising and was struggling to concentrate. She missed two work deadlines – the first time in her career. Her self-confidence was severely impacted.
- Recommended a change to her work schedule
- Signposted her to mental health support
- Risk assessment: desk fan, cold water, disabled toilet access
- Supported the employer to develop a menopause policy
- Provided Menopause in the Workplace training
- Advised referral to her GP – HRT subsequently prescribed
How Medwyn can help
From one person's needs to an organisation-wide approach: clinical assessment, adjustments, policy, training and risk assessments.
Clinical OH assessment
An individual consultation via a management referral, assessing how symptoms affect the role – with a written, work-focused report and GP liaison where appropriate.
Workplace adjustments
Evidence-based, person-specific recommendations – environment, temperature, flexibility, uniform fabric changes.
Policy development
A clear menopause policy reflecting ACAS guidance and your obligations under the Equality Act 2010 to ensure consistent support.
Manager training
Practical training so line managers understand symptoms, hold sensitive conversations, and manage absence and performance fairly.
Menopause risk assessment
A structured review of the workplace factors that can worsen symptoms – temperature, ventilation, facilities and workload – with practical recommendations.
Awareness sessions
Sessions for whole teams – reducing stigma, normalising the conversation and helping colleagues understand how to be supportive.
Your legal obligations as an employer
Menopause isn't a protected characteristic in itself, but where symptoms are ignored, an employee's treatment can amount to sex, age or disability discrimination. An occupational health assessment gives you the clinical evidence to act fairly.
Equality Act 2010
Less favourable treatment because of symptoms can amount to age, disability or sex discrimination, and where the effect is substantial and long-term, the duty to make reasonable adjustments may apply.
Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
Employers must, so far as reasonably practicable, protect the health, safety and welfare of everyone at work – including how symptoms interact with temperature, ventilation, uniform and access to rest and toilet facilities. A menopause risk assessment is the structured way to meet this.
Before any formal absence or performance step, get the clinical picture. An occupational health referral gives you objective, independent evidence on how symptoms affect the role and what adjustments are reasonable.
Workplace Menopause Guide
Our clinical team wrote this guide for employers. It covers support for employees through menopause and the steps to build an action plan with the actions the Government recommends.
- Key terms: perimenopause, menopause, premature menopause
- How symptoms affect work and performance
- Your legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010
- Building your menopause action plan, step by stepNew
- Supporting managers and colleagues effectively
- Managing absence and performance sensitively
- Action plan checklist for managers (appendix)New
Menopause support FAQs
The questions HR teams and managers ask most.
Under the Employment Rights Act 2025, employers with 250 or more employees can publish an equality action plan, including at least one action supporting employees through menopause, alongside their gender pay gap data. Publication is voluntary from 6 April 2026 and expected to become mandatory from spring 2027, subject to secondary legislation. Smaller employers are not required to publish, and Medwyn delivers the clinical and organisational actions the guidance recommends.
Menopause is not a protected characteristic in itself, but depending on their impact, symptoms may amount to a disability, or unfavourable treatment may relate to sex or age discrimination. Tribunals have found in employees' favour where employers did not take symptoms into account. This is general information, not legal advice – an occupational health assessment gives you the clinical evidence to act fairly.
Common themes include temperature control and ventilation, flexibility over hours and deadlines, uniform considerations, access to rest and toilet facilities, and supportive one-to-one conversations. The right combination is individual – which is why our recommendations are set out per person, following a clinical assessment.
No. Our focus is occupational: how symptoms affect work, and what support helps. Prescribing and treatment stay with the employee's own GP – and where appropriate, our clinicians will recommend that the employee speaks to their GP, and can liaise with consent.
Yes – through a management referral, with the employee's consent. A Medwyn clinician assesses how symptoms affect the person's ability to carry out their role and provides a written report with practical, work-focused recommendations.
A structured review of the workplace factors that can make symptoms worse – temperature, ventilation, uniform, rest and toilet facilities, and workload – with practical recommendations to reduce them. It is also one of the actions recommended in the Government's action plan guidance.
Yes. Our manager training covers symptoms, supportive conversations and adjustments, for line managers of any gender.
Perimenopause is the transition period leading up to menopause, when symptoms often start. It can begin in the mid-40s and last several years, and many people experience significant symptoms before their periods stop. Medwyn's support – and the Government's action plan guidance – covers all stages: perimenopause, menopause and post-menopause.
Further reading
Related services
Menopause support often works alongside these:
Management referrals
The route for an individual menopause assessment – independent, work-focused clinical advice with a report within 72 hours.
Learn more →Mental health & neurodiversity
Overlapping wellbeing support – anxiety, low mood and confidence are among the most work-relevant menopause symptoms.
Learn more →Policy development
The menopause policy behind consistent support, and one of the six actions in the Government guidance.
Learn more →This page is general information for employers and is not individual medical or legal advice.
Create a menopause-friendly workplace
Speak to us about assessment, policy, training, risk assessments and your menopause action plan. We answer enquiries within 3 working hours.