Breakthrough for working Spanish women suffering from menstrual pain .
The Madrid government has approved a bill that grants them leave in the event of "disabling" cycles : "special" permits will be of varying duration depending on the case and paid "in full" by the state. A measure that exists, in more or less similar terms, only in some Asian countries and in Zambia.
"We are the first country in Europe to recognize menstrual health as part of women's rights", claimed the Minister of Equal Opportunities, Irene Montero: "The message is clear: the menstrual cycle will no longer be a taboo, the time is over. to go to work after stuffing ourselves with pills and having to hide the pain we feel. "
To access the leave, Montero specified, it will not be necessary to have previously paid contributions. However, it will be necessary to demonstrate, through a medical certificate, that the menstrual cycle is "associated with disabling pain" , a condition often "linked to other pathologies".
The new type of leave is included in a broader legislative text, which includes, in particular, provisions wanted by the center-left in the government to "lock down" access to abortion . The new Spanish bill - which will then have to be approved in Parliament - also includes measures such as the abolition of the parental authorization requirement for girls aged 16 and 17 and the guarantee that in every public health center there are health workers willing to practice it. Furthermore, the introduction of maternity leave starting from week 39 of pregnancy, which will not lead to a reduction in post-partum leave, and the extension of compulsory sex education to all stages of education are envisaged.
In Italy, a proposal to introduce menstrual leave came in 2016 from four deputies of the Democratic Party , but the initiative was not successful.
(Unioneonline / D)
