An Indian company is now letting women choose to take off work on the first day of their periods, offering “menstrual leave” as part of its official vacation policy.
The digital media company, called “Culture Machine,” said the new policy is an attempt to soften the social stigmas and taboos that come along with menstruation in India, displayed by the fact that women on their periods are often not allowed to prepare food or go to temple because they are thought to be “unclean.”
The company is advocating that Indian authorities sign this policy into law so that working women everywhere can benefit from this privilege, according to NTVonline. The company has asked India’s Minister for Women and the Minister for Human Resources to craft a policy that lets all women enjoy a day where they don’t have to go to work. Their petition to legislate FOP has received over 25,000 signatures to date.
The firm published a YouTube video in early July starring its female employees sharing their thoughts about the company’s “First Day of Period (FOP) Leave” policy.
WATCH:
“The first day is obviously not so comfortable for most … so we felt it was time we face reality. This is not an embarrassment, this is a part of life,” Devleena S. Majumdar, president of human resources at Culture Machine, said in the video.
Culture Machine did not mention whether the proposed policy would affect their hiring decisions or work productivity.
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