Welcome to the ‘Women, Work and the Menopause’ – a website that discusses the first Australian-based academic study of the
experience of menopause for professional women.

This project addresses a significant and emerging demographic,
economic and workforce planning issue. Women comprise 46% of Australia’s workforce (ABS, 2013) and are the vast majority of
workers in some key industries. For example, women comprise 79% of the Health Care & Social Assistance (HCSA) workforce, 70% of Education & Training (ET), and 58% of Retail Trade (Australian
Government DEEWR, 2013). It is commonly reported that
Australia’s workforce is ageing, but this is rarely linked with gender.  Women aged 45 years and over comprise 17% of Australia’s workforce (Tilly et al., 2013). These figures are likely to increase as more women enter the workforce and the government explores the possibility of raising the eligible pension age to 70 (Productivity Commission, 2013).

The research team is comprised of medical, health, management and sociology scholars and aims to provide an insight and voice to women’s experience of menopause as situated within the broader landscape of later working life.  In giving voice to this under-utilised, but valuable, groups of employees, we seek to make some
recommendations that are relevant to organisations interested in exploring how best to support women in realising their potential within the contemporary workplace.