Posted on 02/10/2005 11:50:53 AM PST by pissant
Female workers at carmaker Toyota could soon benefit from 12 days paid menstrual leave each year.
The claim is one of 600 improvements being sought by the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) from the company.
Others include employer-provided childcare, 10 per cent annual pay rises for three years and superannuation payments of 15 per cent by 2007.
The union's Vehicle Division has started negotiations with the car manufacturer over a new enterprise bargaining agreement to replace the document that expires later this year.
The agreement would cover about 4000 people of which 10 to 12 per cent were women.
"We're at the working party stage at the moment," said AMWU Vehicle Division federal secretary Ian Jones, who is also chairman of the Federation of Vehicle Industry Unions.
Mr Jones said the thinking behind the menstrual leave provision was "obvious".
"It's the same as why we have maternity leave and parental leave, these are all matters that deal with your working life and issues that you can't ignore," he said.
Advertisement Advertisement"We believe that people should be given that time off to accommodate the circumstances that they find themselves in."
The menstrual leave would be in addition to sick leave.
"A lot of women have terribly bad periods and they are genuinely ill and we simply say that has to be recognised."
It was the first time the AMWU had tried to win menstrual leave provisions, he said.
"Every negotiation we do provides us with pointers to pursue elsewhere, but only where it's relevant, I mean we wouldn't be pursuing menstrual leave in a foundry."
While most of Toyota's workers would not benefit from the extra leave days "unless men can grow a womb", only women who were genuinely ill because of their periods would be entitled to the leave, Mr Jones said.
Comment was being sought from Toyota Australia.
Good point. Can I get "hot flash" leave?
This is not fair!! First multiple orgasms, now this!!
OH, Good Grief!
"This could lead to a vicious cycle".
__________________________
LOL
Bad cases are indeed real. It's usually solvable with hormonal treatment.
Sounds to me like one more reason not to hire women.... dayum.. I thought the woman's movement was supposed to end that sort of thing... now here they are basically saying yea, we can't work as much or be as dependable...
Another parasitic, bloodsucking, strangling of business by politically connected unions. In the end, when the company fails, it will be management's fault. Some things never change!
This is a joke...and I AM a woman. If you have that much pain, you better see a doctor about it. What next?
I'm a woman and I think that this "menstrual leave" issue is crap. Some women have problems with it and it makes them very sick, many more have no trouble at all. Any time off taken for this should fall under ordinary sick and personal time policies.
This thing makes women look stupid and will also hurt them in the workplace. How many employers will reduce their hiring of women so that they don't have to lose them to "cramp days"?
Yeesh, this is what Midol was made for. Take a pill, suck it up, and deal with it.
LQ
There have got to be strings attached to this request.
as is pregnancy.....but I suppose if you are a company, letting women take one sick day a month is better than giving them 3 months paid maternity leave.....
I for one would never rag on these valiant activists.
me got a different take... I wouldn't go near my wife during hers. I WON'T go no near others to take the sh*t either :)
So should I get disability pay?
I live with three women who are very hormonal- wife and two daughters.
(maybe even combat pay)
The regular old bc prevents PMS.
So long as it's passing.
After viewing your post, I heard the Sponge Monkeys start singing in my head. Out Monkeys! Now!
CG..your opinion??
"bloodsucking"
Unfortunate adjective alert.
And people wonder why manufacturing is leaving the US.
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