On the second day of UNISON’s women’s conference in Edinburgh last week, delegates debated a substantial motion from the national young members’ forum on period poverty.
According to ActionAid, three in 10 girls in the UK are experiencing period poverty, which means they cannot afford to buy safe, hygienic menstrual products. This is within the context of austerity, homelessness and rising use of food banks.
The inability to properly manage periods means girls are missing school when they have their periods, which has a knock-on effect on their academic achievement and has an impact on broader equality.
Conference asked the national women’s committee to “consider surveying UNISON members on how menstruation affects or has affected their working lives, including health issues, disability, access to wellbeing leave, and the impact of period poverty”.
The committee was also called on to encourage branches to raise the issue locally with employers.
Delegates discussed the menopause in a group of motions, hearing that Black women experience the menopause differently to white women, with “far more adverse symptoms from obesity to heart diseases.”
One delegate also pointed out that it is a “very taboo subject for Asian women”, recommending that branches produce information materials.
“Menopause support should be standard – not a luxury,” it was concluded.
‘Scrap the cap’
Conference also debated the two-child benefit cap, describing it as a “direct attack on women” and agreeing that lifting it would be a cost-effective way to tackle child poverty.
It urged the committee to work with “all the relevant bodies within UNISON” to campaign to “scrap the cap”.
Day two also heard three motions debated on mental health, including one on “challenging the myths about women with neurodiversity and associated mental health conditions.”
“Listen to women,” said one delegate, with another speaker calling for a “push for better research.”
Conference also examined the financial impact of metal health, and called for the union to organise more courses to train mental health first aiders.
One delegate described how “neurodivergent women have learnt to mask symptoms to fit in. This leads to chronic stress and burn out.”
The day also saw motions passed on housing, and women and girls’ safety on public transport.
The article Time to end period poverty and taboos first appeared on the UNISON National site.
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