This support includes webinars that help to educate and raise awareness about menopause
Specialist lender OSB Group has highlighted the wide range of menopause support it has been offering to colleagues during the celebration of World Menopause Day 2022.
This support includes a Menopause Champion within the HR function and the ‘we’ve got you’ sanitary supplies in toilets. There are also dedicated webinars on topics such as managing menopause in the workplace, which is tailored to all colleagues with line management duties, and talking about menopause, which is a more general look at menopause and how colleagues can support each other.
Since support started in March 2021, the group’s people development team said it has received positive feedback, one of which was from Nicky Ridge, a customer service assistant.
“It was a real eye opener attending the menopause workshop as I had no idea that what I was experiencing was normal,” Ridge stated. “It gave me a better understanding that then prompted me to speak to my GP. It also gave awareness to the younger people in the company who would probably have never understood the full symptoms and the impact it can have on your abilities to carry out your job on a daily basis as no two days are ever the same.”
Michelle Boyd, vulnerable customer officer, commented that she now does not mind sharing her experiences as the topic has not been spoken about nearly enough.
“I am only at the start of my journey so still a little way to go,” she said. “The best way for me to describe how it impacts me is it’s as if the ‘menopause fairy’ comes in and puts fog in my head! Sometimes it feels as though my brain cells have been sucked from my mind! I find my patience levels are disappearing, and that’s not a great feeling at all.”
Carly Spittle, people development training manager at the OSB Group, said they have been working hard to remove any barriers in the workplace and create discussions and awareness around topics including those that have been seen as taboo subjects.
“We want to talk about these subjects that affect everyone at some point in their lives, and through talking about it, we are carving appropriate support for our colleagues,” Spittle explained. “Already this year, we’ve ran and continue to run a series of webinars around menopause, which has been attended by a wide range of colleagues.
“These sessions help to educate and raise awareness around the many side effects that can be experienced with menopause such as ‘brain fog’, mood changes, irritability, anxiety, just to name a few. This not only helps people experiencing these to know that these symptoms are normal for menopause and perimenopause, but also helps other colleagues to identify and understand these effects and how they can impact on people experiencing these.”
