Watch: A Mumbai media company is now offering its women staff paid 'first day of period’ leave
Culture Machine wants the government to follow suit.
Should women get a holiday on the first day of their period? A Mumbai-based media company thinks so, and has introduced a “First Day of Period” leave policy. Culture Machine, which has 75 female employees, applied this policy from July this year in order to be more women-friendly.
In the video (above), the company’s women staff talk about how they feel on their first day and how people around them tend to react when they know it’s “that time of the month.” When they learn about the new leave policy, they are ecstatic, to say the least.
“First day is obviously a not-so-comfortable day for most. It’s time we face the reality. This is not an embarrassment. This is part of life,” said Devleena S Majumder, president of human resource at Culture Machine. The company has also floated a petition directed at the Ministry of Human Resource Development and Ministry of Women and Child Development, to apply this policy across India.
A few countries already have such a policy in place to cater to dysmenorrhea or menstrual pain, though with conditions. Earlier in 2017, Italy became the first European country to consider allowing paid menstrual leave to women.
