France’s government wants to find out what menopause at work costs companies. This emerges from reporting by actuEL HSE (France), shortly after the first national “Assises de la ménopause” on 15 October 2026 at the Paris Santé Campus in Paris. Health Minister Stéphanie Rist announced a series of measures there, building on a report she had drafted earlier as a member of parliament.
Rist report: costs still unknown
That report, which contained 25 proposals and was handed to the government in April 2025, included ten recommendations specifically for the workplace. One of them: map out the economic costs of menopause, for companies, employees and public finances. The reason is that such figures simply do not exist in France. According to the Direction Générale du Travail, 28 companies had at the time tested measures in the area of working conditions, but only one of them specifically addressed menopause. Based on INSEE population data, more than 17 million French women are affected, typically between the ages of 45 and 55. The report rejected a special “menopause leave” (“congé ménopause”), because of the risk of indirect discrimination and extra costs. The then Minister of Labour and Health, Catherine Vautrin, adopted the recommendation for a mid-career medical check-up (“visite médicale de mi-carrière”), with the United Kingdom cited as an example for further workplace measures.
Government announces measures
During the Assises on 15 October 2026, Rist mentioned strengthening “Mon Bilan Prévention”, the preventive check-up offered among others between ages 45 and 50, and asked the Haute Autorité de Santé (HAS) to examine whether midwives may prescribe hormonal menopause treatments. Assurance Maladie and midwives are negotiating a special, longer menopause consultation in the coming weeks. Santé publique France will launch an awareness campaign in January 2027. According to the Ministry of Health, 17.2 million French women over 45 have already gone through menopause, with around 500,000 more women reaching it each year. According to a report by Pourquoi Docteur, 61 percent of the women surveyed say they never received information from a healthcare provider.
Context
The fact that the workplace is now firmly on the agenda fits a broader international trend. The International Labour Organization (ILO) reported in June 2026 that an estimated 657 million working women worldwide are going through menopause, with consequences such as sick leave, presenteeism (being present but less able to perform) and early withdrawal from the labour market. In the United States, according to research cited by the ILO, menopause costs around 1.8 billion dollars a year in lost working time, and more than 26 billion dollars when healthcare costs are included.
Significance for employers worldwide
Menopause typically occurs around the peak of a career, when employees have built up experience and leadership positions. Absence, reduced productivity or departure at that age therefore affects not only individual women, but also the knowledge and continuity within organisations. According to research cited by the ILO, this can also lead to a long-term income gap of up to 10 percent, widening the pay and pension gap between men and women. The ILO therefore calls for workplace policies, awareness and occupational safety and health measures. Because hard figures are still largely lacking, as the French report already established, the subject remains underexposed in many employers’ absence and HR policies.
Source: Ménopause au travail : le gouvernement veut mesurer son coût pour les entreprises, 16 October 2026
Additional research: Editions Tissot (Rist report, 10 proposals for the workplace), Vidal.fr (announcement of the national Assises), Pourquoi Docteur (report on the Assises of 15 October, published 16 October 2026) and ILO (international figures, June 2026).
