Menopause Awareness Month | It's time we changed our language around menopause in the workplace - here's how

The number of tribunals centering around menopause is rising. Tribunals are thought to have tripled in less than two years, and there is a key element to recent ones: language.

Whether it's referring to a 'biddy', a 'dinosaur' or 'aches and pains' there is often reporting of negative, throwaway and derogatory language toward women who 'dare' to speak up about going through menopause.

Maria Rooney, a former social worker, is suing former employer Leicester City Council for workplace discrimination, saying she felt forced to resign in 2018 after she was given formal warnings for absences, despite sharing menopause symptoms including anxiety. She said she received inappropriate comments about the issue.

An office manager who won £37,000 in compensation also found language at the heart of her case. Karen Farquharson, 49, was dismissed as an “old biddy with aches and pains” when she took time off due to the symptoms she was suffering, with the company founder accusing her of “strolling in” when it suited her and told her to “just get on with it”.