Period leave started in Odisha, Deputy CM announced during Independence Day celebrations

The Odisha government has introduced a one-day menstrual leave for women employees working in both government and private sectors. Odisha Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida announced this during the district-level Independence Day celebrations held in Cuttack. This policy, which will come into effect immediately, allows women employees to take leave on the first or second day of their menstrual cycle.

The initiative aims to help women manage their health and well-being more effectively. Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida said, “It is optional, women who were involved in professional work can take leave on the first or second day of physical pain. This will be applicable to both government and private sector employees.”

There has been a demand for menstrual leave in India

There has been a demand for period leave from time to time in India. There have been many controversial statements on this. Recently, Smriti Irani had made such a statement that a controversy arose in the whole country.

Union Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani has expressed her opposition to the idea of ​​mandatory menstrual leave for women employees. Replying to a question by RJD MP Manoj Kumar Jha in the Rajya Sabha last year, Irani on Wednesday (December 13) said menstruation is a natural part of life and should not be treated as a hindrance requiring special leave provisions.

Why is period leave needed?

• This means that when a woman gets her periods, she should get leave from the office and money for this leave should not be deducted.
• It is completely normal to have periods. Most women have a menstrual cycle of 28 days. But some women may have periods in 21 to 35 days.
• Women have to go through unbearable pain during periods. Medical science says that 200 types of changes occur in women before and during periods. These changes are not only physical but also mental.
• Irritability increases in women, they feel sad. They feel like crying over every little thing. They have pain in the stomach and back. They feel tired and weak.
• Professor Siobhan Harlow of Michigan University, USA, says that 15% to 25% women experience extreme pain during periods. In 2017, a survey was conducted on 32,748 women in the Netherlands. In this survey, 14% of the women said that they had taken leave from work or school during periods. A study shows that due to problems related to periods, employees lose 8.9 days of productivity every year.
• Some research suggests that most women do not have problems before or during their periods that affect their daily work. According to an American journal, 20% to 32% of women have problems due to premenstrual syndrome and their work is affected. For 3% to 8% of women, this pain is very severe.

What happened in India regarding period leave?

• There is no central law or policy on period leave in India. In 2020, Zomato announced period leave. Zomato gives 10 days of paid leave every year. After Zomato, many other startups also started giving such leaves.
• Only three states in India – Bihar, Kerala and Sikkim – have rules regarding period leave. Bihar, which is considered backward, was the first state to give the right of period leave to its female employees. In Bihar, there is a law since 1992 that female employees of the state government can take two days of period leave every month. This leave is available till the age of 45 years.
• In January last year, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had announced period leave for female students studying in government universities. Along with this, 73% attendance was made mandatory for female students instead of 75%.
• In May this year, the Sikkim High Court also decided to give period leave to all women employees working in the registry. Women working in the High Court registry can take two to three days leave every month.
• However, there is no law or policy on this at the central level. Several times some MPs presented private bills regarding period leave in the Parliament, but they were ignored. In December last year, Smriti Irani, who was a minister at the Centre, had said that leave is not needed for periods. It is not a disease or disability. She said that there is no proposal regarding period leave.

Where in the world does one get period leave?

• Historian P. Bhaskaranunni has claimed in his book ‘Kerala in the 19th Century’ that in 1912, a government school in Tripunithura, Kochi (now Ernakulam), Kerala allowed girl students to take period leave. At that time, girls studying here could take period leave during the annual examination and appear for their exam later.
• Similarly, in 1922, the Soviet Union had decided to give period leave. Then women could take two to three days leave every month and their salary was also not deducted. However, this decision was called discriminatory and was canceled in 1927.
• There is a law regarding this in Japan since 1947. Here companies cannot refuse to give period leave to women. Women can take period leave if they want. However, most women do not take leave. A government survey conducted in 2014 revealed that only 0.9% of women had taken period leave.
• In Indonesia and Philippines too, working women can take two days off every month. Period leave is also compulsory in Taiwan. Here working women can take three days off in a year. During this leave they are paid half salary. In South Korea, working women get one day off every month.
• The law in Vietnam is slightly different. Here women get a 30-minute break during their period. However, this was amended in 2020, after which women can take three days off every month. The law also provides for extra pay if they do not take leave.
• Zambia is the only country in Africa where period leave is mandatory since 2015. Here women can take one day off every month. If a woman is denied period leave, she can even sue the company or the employer.
• In Europe, which is considered progressive, only Spain has introduced a law regarding period leave last year. Here women can take period leave four times a year. A doctor’s prescription is required to take the leave. Earlier in 2016, a bill was introduced in the Italian Parliament regarding this, but it could not be passed. There is no rule or law regarding this in America either.