Popular Food Delivery App Introduces “Period Leave” For Women, Transgender Employees To Build A More Inclusive Work Culture

It’s no secret that a large chunk of India (bachelors we’re looking at you!) relies heavily on food delivery apps to get their dietary needs met. While many workplaces in this country are growing more and more open to providing their employees with more employee-friendly workplaces, Zomato decided to take things further and provide medical leave for women and transgender employees. This is a big move as they have acknowledged not just women but the LGBTQ community as well. So here’s how it happened (1):

Fostering A Healthy Work Culture

When asked why they made this new inclusion, the chief executive officer of the company said, “The move is to “foster a culture of trust, truth, and acceptance”. As of now, Zomato is one of the biggest Indian companies to institute the policy in India. Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal had earlier added that he wanted his employees to know that there shouldn’t be any shame in or stigma when they apply for period leave. He added that they should be free to inform their managers, teammates, and colleagues that they are on their period leave for the workday.

Deepinder Goyal also addressed male employees and told them to be more open to talking about these things and added that they should not feel uncomfortable if women are approached by them. He said, “This is a part of life, and while we don’t fully understand what women go through, we need to trust them when they say they need to rest this out. I know that menstrual cramps are very painful for a lot of women – and we have to support them through it if we want to build a truly collaborative culture at Zomato,”. In his email to the company, Deepinder mentioned that women and transgender employees would be provided 10 days of extra leave per year as “period leave’”. He also added that the leaves should only be availed if you are unable to attend work. To further ensure that people don’t misuse the policy, he noted that they would only be applicable to apply to one day off per menstrual cycle (2).

Why This Is A Good Move

Let’s be real. Periods are a mess. Not only do you have to deal with the literal mess but also with the emotions and physical problems that come with it. Nearly every menstruating person on the planet has at least dealt with a few hormonal changes during their period. Many women suffer from painful period cramps that can only be relieved through bed rest, heat pads, or medication. One extra leave per month could possibly make quite the difference to the productivity of these employees as they will be able to put in more work once they feel better.

Unfortunately, for many women in poorer parts of the country today, their offices still lack resources for proper menstrual hygienic management. Due to certain conditions, women may have to go hours without disposing of their sanitary products and thus may be forced to be in discomfort. This can also lead to women developing reproductive health issues.

Those who belong to the menstruation age group (~12 to 49 years) represent a significant and growing portion of the 1.2 billion women employed globally. Hence they need to be taken into account when it comes to implementing beneficial workplace policies. In India, around 86 percent of people work in the informal economy (blue-collar jobs), out of which 91 percent are women. Lack of enforcement of occupational safety regulations and standards, if existing, adds to the vulnerabilities faced by those working in the informal sector (3).

Why Women Should Speak Up More

The only way we can help ourselves is if we step forward and voice out our concerns. If you believe this should be implemented in your company, it’s a good idea to bring it up with your boss and management. If building an employee-friendly work culture is their goal, many companies will start to take these things into consideration and implement the changes. We still live in a society where millions of Indian women, young and old face discrimination due to lack of awareness surrounding the topic of menstruation. Many women are still shunned and treated badly when they are on their period.

In various parts of the country, women are not allowed to enter kitchens, pray or partake in any major activities during this time and the unfortunate reality is that a lot of people still believe in these superstitions. Many people still believe women are completely incapable of functioning while they are on their period. However, in some workplaces, they are still expected to show up or if they do take leave, many take leave for different reasons like stomach upset, fever, etc. We need to start opening doors so that women feel comfortable talking about what they’re going through or at least informing those around them to go easier on them for the day.

While Zomato may be the only major Indian company to have implemented these changes so far, the company has now sparked a greater dialogue. We’re hoping that as attitudes change and people start communicating with one another, “period leave” will be implemented in other workspaces. The only way to de-stigmatize a topic is to speak openly about it. Do let us know your thoughts on this article in the comment section below.

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Niharika NayakBA (Media & Communication)

 

Niharika has a passion for all things art, music, and travel and has over 4 years of experience in writing for social media. During her spare time, she likes experimenting in the kitchen, playing video games, and hanging out with stray animals.

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