Italy might soon become the first Western country with an official “menstrual leave” policy for working women. The lower house of Italy’s parliament has started discussing a draft law that, if approved, will mandate companies to grant three days of paid leave each month to female employees who experience painful periods.
The proposed law was hailed by some local media outlets as a positive step to help working women who suffer from cramps. The Italian edition of women’s magazine Marie Claire described it as “a standard-bearer of progress and social sustainability”. But the bill has also its critics, even among the working woman it seeks to protect.
Some fear that the law might backfire, penalising women in a country where they are already struggling to participate in the workforce. If women were granted extra days of paid leave, wrote Lorenza Pleuteri in Donna Moderna, another women’s magazine, “employers could become even more oriented to hire men rather than women”.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/italy-menstrual-leave-reproductive-health-women-employment-a7649636.htmlInteresting.
