Helen Normoyle is the co founder of My Menopause Centre, and an independent non-executive director of Allied Irish Banks (AIB) in Ireland and Travelodge in the UK.
“I founded My Menopause Centre with my good friend Dr Clare Spencer about three years ago: menopause is close to my heart both professionally and personally. Like many women, I became interested in menopause when I started experiencing symptoms myself. I realised I’d been experiencing them for the previous five years but didn’t know that what I was going through was menopasuse related so I wasn’t doing the things that would have helped. It was eye opening for me.
Encouraging employers to create a level playing field for women in the workplace
“When I had the opportunity to join the Menopause Friendly Independent Panel I jumped at it. I think it’s so important that we champion menopause friendly workplaces and do everything we can to encourage employers to create a level playing field for women in the workplace in a sustainable and meaningful way.
“There’s no doubt we’ve seen a huge amount of progress in last few years. When I was menopausal in the workplace, very few conversations were being had, and trying to do so was like putting your head above the parapet. What we’ve seen in the last few years is the conversation becoming more normalised. But there is so much more to do and we can’t rest on our laurels.
There are clear business benefits as well as a strong moral case
“All credit to those organisations who have taken the first steps. They are blazing a trail for others. They’ll find it helps their bottom line, leading to better productivity, more engagement and becoming a great place for women to stay working in, or join. There are clear business benefits as well as a strong moral case.
“We look for demonstrable impact across key areas that we know makes a difference. A clear plan of the change they want to see, a view of what good looks like and that what is being done is meaningful. It always helps when they engage with the women in their workplace to find out what their needs are. These will be different across employers and sectors, but also departments within an organisation: what you need if you work on a factory or shop floor is different, for example, to a contact centre. So we look out for signs of active listening and feedback being acted upon.
To close our gender pay gap, healthcare gap and pensions gap, we have to actively do something about it
“It must be sustainable change, not something you do and then leave. An always-on programme of support and awareness raising, regular training so any new line managers or team managers that join are all made aware of what the symptoms could be and what support is available in the organisation. While a policy isn’t the be-all and end-all, it can help to set out expectaions of the role of managers and what support employees could expect. But this must be brought to life, lived in day in and day out.
“Knowledge is empowering. When employers aren’t aware of menopause and the impact of symptoms it’s hard for them to put support in place. But in the UK now you’d be hard pressed to not have an understanding of menopause, thanks to great coverage in the media and awareness-raising from celebrities and organisations such as Menopause in the Workplace and My Menopause Centre. If we want to close our gender pay gap, healthcare pay gap and pensions gap, we have to actively do something about it, and menopause support in the workplace is a great place to prioritise.
In terms of menstrual health, creating that safe place for discussion is a good starting point
“It’s also so important for organisations to consider the impact of menstruation and menstrual health. This has also been shrouded in stigma, but workplaces can once again lead the way in normalising these conversations. In the same way we’re seeing the positive impact of talking about menopause we can do the same with menstrual health.
“I’m passionate about inclusion and equality and being on the Independent Panel is a great way to see first hand some of the great work being done to address this. The bar has been raised and I always look forward to seeing how organisations build off their insights and learnings, understanding what type of support makes the most difference, how they can measure this and how and when they can take things up to the next level.
“In terms of menstrual health, creating that safe place for discussion is a good starting point. Helping people understand what menstruation is, what menstrual health conditions there are, and how to empathetically and sensitively have conversations about these.
