Period Leave

Before I discuss the merits and demerits of period leave, let me introduce what it is to those of you who are not aware. Period Leave means that in the formal sector, a woman can take one or two days of her period off by using the excuse that she has her period instead of stating that she has a headache, fever etc. Other variations could exist but this is what I am acquainted with. I say formal sector because in the informal sector, wages themselves don’t do justice to the working conditions, let alone proposing the idea of period or maternity leave.

Men, to a large extent, are ignorant of what a woman goes through for the majority of her life. Women not only have to undergo various kinds of pain but experience mood swings, hormonal imbalance, unexplainable cravings, PMS and in some extreme cases anxiety, PCOS, PMDD etc. Men are not completely at fault here. Even women discourage other women from talking about periods and their struggles in public. People need to understand that it is after all a natural, biological process and not a weird alien mutation that needs to be shunned or considered impure.

Why do women need period leave? It’s obvious, isn’t it? Because their body needs the rest for that one or two days a month. But women have never asked for such a thing for centuries. Why now? Because we have been suppressed and discriminated against for eons and now that we finally have a voice, we are asking for things that we deserve.

One argument against period leaves is the following. Consider a situation where there are two workers A and B, where regardless of gender, A can work for 27 days a month but B can work for only 24 or 25 days. Assuming all other factors to be the same, an employer will prefer to employ A over B considering the fact that they both get paid equally. This is a pretty logical argument and to be honest, I think this factor should also be considered when the topic of period leave is considered.

Though the argument looks straight forward, it is not so simple. The first counter argument would be the fact that more hours does not equal more or better work. The second argument is the fact that this is a major misconception about period leaves. One, employers need not make it compulsory. Period leaves mean that the woman has an option to cash in on such an occasion. Two, period leaves are not exactly leaves per se. They are simply another form of WFH. There is a stark difference between working from an office and working from the comfort of your home where people will not intrude into your personal space.

Some other things to consider which may seem irrelevant but are extremely pertinent to the topic that we are discussing. In a Utopian world, a man would share responsibilities with the woman at home. But how many men or even boys offer to clean up after a meal? It is not about the cooking because anyone passionate enough would do that. It is about washing the dishes and cleaning the table and making sure the house is spic and span. Unless we mature as a society, a woman will be burdened with the sole responsibility of taking up household chores. Another thing for you to consider. The chance of a married woman getting a job is far lesser than that of an unmarried woman getting the job. This is because the management feels that she will be having additional responsibilities as a married woman like tending to the needs of her husband and her children. But this is not the case for men. So is society and these corporate companies trying to tell us that a man has no responsibility towards his wife and kids? Why is the concept of maternity leave acceptable but that of paternity leave shunned? It is the responsibility of both the parents to take after the child. Even if the child predominantly requires only the mother’s care, the mother requires her partner’s care after the ordeal she has been through. Why is it that a man showing his partner that he cares for her termed as “simp” and ridiculed when a woman caring for her man is deemed as a must? Why is it that men can cook in a restaurant for money but cannot at home for the simple pleasure of feeding his family? So basically what all of this means is that a woman should sit at home, do her chores, dote on her husband and take care of her kids instead of actually going to work and expressing her talents. And even if she does go to work, she still has to accept the other responsibilities without an iota of help from her partner. Bravo! What an incredible world we live in.

Please understand that no woman in her right mind wants to go through her periods. We did not beg and plead to be tortured every month. I am confident that if a woman had the chance to push off the entire pregnancy thing on to a man, she would definitely do it. It is sad that our Creator has created such different biological systems that leads to the woman being considered as the inferior gender whereas we are capable of so much more than what you imagine. It is time that society realises that there are differences, accepts and accommodates them.

This article is not a generic rant. I have actually given a lot of thought to the subject and will be proposing solutions. Before that, I want to thank my stars for the fact that I was born in this century in a fairly modern household which means that this thought process is not only entertained but also encouraged. The world is definitely progressing but just not at the pace we would like. Moving on to the solutions, the first solution is a basic principle of management. Differential Wage System as proposed by F W Taylor. Assuming that A and B are of equal capabilities, an organisation would not want to lose a skilled worker just because he/she cannot work on all days. This way the organisation pays only for the work that is done and does not incur any loss. My second solution is one that is already in effect in various parts of the world – better working hours. Men and women only work from 10am to 6pm for five days a week and can take a day off every week and work from home. Albeit a little unrealistic, at least a few organisations can employ this technique. My third solution is to give the woman an actual break on the days she has periods and make her compensate on other days by working more hours or by working during the weekend. Thus, the only argument against period leave fails.

In the case of an important meeting or the need to travel, I have to propose a theory of economics – classifying your needs. If the need can be postponed, you shouldn’t spend on it immediately. If a need is urgent, make sure you fulfil it as soon as possible. The same principle can be applied here. In such extraordinary cases, women need not take the day off as it is an extremely important event which cannot be postponed.

From what I have known and observed, most women will not cash in on these period leaves without enough incentive, especially if it promotes the idea that she is weak or incapable. Moreover, women have been asked to endure the pain silently and not talk about it. It is time that this notion changed. I, for one, am done with the double standards. I will insist that women start talking about periods at least in their immediate circles to create an awareness of how we got the worst end of the stick. One article might not exactly create the radical change we need but if more people talk about it, we can all definitely hope for a better future.

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Periods by themselves are not a curse. But we have never been taught to embrace them or to look at them in a positive light. Thus, women and girls direct all their anger towards periods and having been born with a uterus because they have fallen prey to stereotypes they are not able to break out of. Ignorance, here, is not bliss. Let us do our best to spread awareness and the right kind of awareness about the topic.

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I am not claiming to be an expert on the subject. I also realise that it is a sensitive topic. Neither do I have access to any statistics. This is just an opinion and I am open to debate and discussions.