Correct Answer :   24th February 2023

24th February 2023, the Supreme Court refused to hear a petition regarding menstrual leave for workers and students across the country, citing it as a policy matter.

* It emphasized that menstruation was a biological process, such leave could act as a "disincentive" for employers to hire female employees.

* The concept of menstrual leave for workers and students has been debated for centuries, but such policies are uneven and divisive, even among feminist circles.

News Summary :

* The Supreme Court ruled on 24th February 2023 that there are different "dimensions" to menstrual pain leave, which, while a biological process, may also act as a "disincentive" for employers from engaging women in their organization.

* A three-judge Bench led by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud directed the petitioner to approach the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development to develop a policy.

* The court was hearing a petition seeking a directive to states to develop rules for granting menstrual pain leave to students and working women in workplaces.


What is Menstrual leave?

* Menstrual leave or period leave refers to all policies that allow employees or students to take time off when they are experiencing menstrual pain or discomfort.

* At the workplace, it refers to policies that allow for both paid or unpaid leave, or time for rest.


What kind of menstrual leave policies are in place globally?

Spain : Recently, Spain became the first European country to grant paid menstrual leave to workers, among a host of other sexual health rights. Workers now have the right to three days of menstrual leave— expandable to five days— a month.

Japan : It introduced menstrual leave as part of labour law in 1947, after the idea became popular with labor unions in the 1920s. At present, under Article 68, employers cannot ask women who experience difficult periods to work during that time.

Indonesia : It introduced a policy in 1948, amended in 2003, saying that workers experiencing menstrual pain are not obliged to work on the first two days of their cycle.

Philippines : In the Philippines, workers are permitted two days of menstrual leave a month.

Taiwan : It has an Act of Gender Equality in Employment in place. Employees have the right to request a day off as period leave every month, at half their regular wage. Three such leaves are permitted per year— extra leaves are counted as sick leave.

Zambia : Among the African nations, Zambia introduced one day of leave a month without needing a reason or a medical certificate, calling it Mother’s Day.

Others : The petition also mentioned that the United Kingdom, China and Wales have menstrual leave provisions.

Thus we can say that almost every alternate country has provisions for menstrual leave.


What are the Parliamentary Measures?

Menstruation Benefits Bill, 2017 : In 2017, Arunachal Pradesh MP Ninong Ering introduced the 'Menstruation Benefits Bill, 2017' in Parliament. It was represented in the Lok Sabha on the first day of the Budget Session in 2022, but was ignored as an "unclean topic," according to the petition.

Women's Sexual, Reproductive, and Menstrual Rights Bill in 2018 : Dr. Shashi Tharoor introduced the Women's Sexual, Reproductive, and Menstrual Rights Bill in 2018, proposing that public authorities make sanitary pads freely available to women on their premises.

Private Member's Bill : In the ongoing Budget session of the Parliament, Congress MP from Kerala Hibi Eden announced that he will introduce a private member's Bill seeking the right to paid leave during menstruation for working women, menstrual leave for female students, and free access to menstrual health products.

Right of Women to Menstrual Leave and Free Access to Menstrual Health Products Bill, 2022 : It mandates three days of paid leave for women and transwomen during menstruation. It also aims to broaden the benefit for students...

Source : The Hindu