‘Menstrual Hygiene Day” is an annual awareness day that occurs on May 28, a date symbolically chosen to represent that the average healthy cycle lasts five days every 28 days. The campaign seeks to create a “period friendly world” by improving access to sanitary products and mitigating “taboos” around menstruation. In the ten years since its founding, the Menstrual Hygiene Day movement has gained significant traction and been formally recognized by governments.
On Wednesday, to commemorate Menstrual Hygiene Day, the U.S. Department of Labor Women’s Bureau recommended “5 ways employers can make workplaces more menstruation-friendly.” The suggestions included providing free period products in restrooms to be “access[ed] . . . privately,” allowing darker uniforms, and recognizing menstruation as a qualified reason for paid sick leave. These policies seem counterintuitive: Dispensers in multi-stall bathrooms are hardly accessed privately, wearing a different uniform might signal an ongoing menstrual cycle, and businesses granting paid time off each month will be incentivized to hire men. Aside from the dubious recommendations, the bureau’s statement mentions the “stereotypes and stigmas” that have made menstruation a “taboo” topic in the workplace. But certainly most bodily functions are inappropriate topics in circumstances outside the private realm. And who would want to talk about menstruation in the office?
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