BENGALURU: The Karnataka government is set to introduce paid menstrual leave of six days annually for women, in both the private and public sectors. This follows a report submitted to the government by a panel constituted to look into it.
“A team headed by Dr Sapna Mukherjee was constituted, which has submitted the report to the government. We will hold discussions with all the concerned departments. It will next be placed before the Legislature for its consent,” Labour Secretary Mohammed Mohsin told TNIE.
Karnataka plans to introduce this move first for the private sector, and make it mandatory in government departments after it is made a policy, he added. Mohsin said this was in line with a Supreme Court order calling for the need to have a policy in place on the issue.
In July this year, the SC had asked the Centre to frame a model policy on period leave for female staff. It had also stated that making it mandatory for employers to grant such leave would become counterproductive for women and their participation in the workforce.
Earlier in the day, Labour Minister Santosh Lad reportedly told a section of the media about the proposal to introduce the leave in Karnataka.
Labour Commissioner Dr HN Gopalkrishna said, “The proposal is in the discussion stage. The minister planned to bring it up, but it will first be reviewed by the Labour Department in a few days. Following that, it will move through departmental and governmental levels. Inputs from the Women and Child Development, IT-BT, Health, Commerce, and Industries departments, and other relevant sectors will definitely be considered.”
Women and Child Development Minister Laxmi Hebbalkar emphasised, “We need to understand that women make up a significant part of our workforce, and their needs differ from those of men. As a government sensitive to these needs, we are taking this issue up as a priority and we will take suitable action, keeping women’s needs in mind.”
Bihar was the first state in the country to introduce menstrual leave for women in 1992, with two days leave provided each month. Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Kerala governments also have some form of menstrual leave in place for women.
Globally, Sweden, Italy, South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan offer period leaves for women.