Amid Supreme Court's Refusal To Entertain Menstrual Leave Plea, 5 Reasons Why Women Should Be Granted It

When it is that time of the month, fatigue, menstrual cramps, bloating, mood swings take over. The discomfort and pain periods bring along with it is unbearable to say the least. As bad as it is in general, for some women, the condition is much worse. Making it seem that women are indeed superhumans to step out on menstruating days. Periods are physically and mentally challenging and yet menstruators hardly get time off to recover.

The debate around menstrual leaves has been there for the longest time and the plea seeking it at the Supreme Court recently has sparked it once again.

The Supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, Justice PS Narasimha, and Justice JB Pardiwala has refused to entertain the plea seeking menstrual leave for female students and working women stating that it falls under the domain of the policy. This petition was filed by Advocate Shailendra Mani Tripathi. The bench further suggested the petitioner to file a representation before the Union Ministry of Women & Child Development.

While we continue to discuss if women should be entitled to menstrual leaves, we thought of speaking to a health expert to know if it would anyway benefit young girls and women menstruating monthly.

What Does The Expert Say?

Menstrual Leave To Avoid Inconvenience

Dr. Seema Sharma, Associate Director of Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics at Cloudnine Group of Hospitals, Chandigarh, said, “Women who suffer from gynaecological conditions like fibroids suffer from heavy periods & should be granted a day off. It is quite challenging for such women to go to the office and then be in the workplace with the stress of changing their pads often and using the office washroom. If women are given menstrual leave, all this inconvenience can be saved.”

“The policy, however, can make the employers biased towards women employees and they might not hire many women employees. However, if work from home is granted, this perspective can be changed and it will also help menstruating women work from the comfort of their home,” she added.

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Menstrual Leave Will Ease Out Pressure

Periods are mentally and physically challenging. It is physically stressful because of symptoms like menstrual cramps, back ache, bloating, and headache to name a few. With all these symptoms when menstruators step out to study or work it further adds to the existing pressures. To make these days easier for menstruators, they should be granted a leave.

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Period Leave Will Help Women Recover After Menstruation

When one’s mental health is affected, they aren't able to deliver their best and this further hampers their overall well-being. A period leave can give them a break, and they can dedicate it to self care to help recover from their periods.

What are your thoughts on menstrual leaves? Should women be granted period leaves? Will they benefit from them? Share with us on our social media handles.