THERE is no need to give female employees menstrual leave as there are already too many public holidays in the country, employers said.

They said the leave will only impact businesses and manpower allocation.

SME Association of Malaysia president Ding Hong Sing said there are already too many public holidays due to the numerous festivities.

“There are public holidays for all celebrations. In addition, full-time employees have annual and sick leave,” Ding told The Malaysian Insight.

“It won’t be good for employers to include menstrual leave for women.”

This is because in small- and medium-sized enterprises, there may only be one or two employees in each department, he said.

“If we implement menstrual leave, does this mean that employers will have to spend more money to hire more employees?

“In the long run, it will only have a negative impact on the economy and productivity, and we will lag behind Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia.”

Given that women are also given 98 days maternity leave in the private sector, the addition of menstrual leave could see employers less willing to hire women, Ding said.

If there is a need, women can opt for half-day off to rest, he said, adding that most employers will allow this.

“As long as their job is done, they need half a day to rest, their salaries won’t be docked.”

Ng Geok Chee, chairman of the Kuala Lumpur And Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall Women’s Section, agreed with Ding there are already too many public holidays.

This means most employees only work fewer than 200 days a year, she said.

“I don’t think there is a need for menstrual leave,” she said.

Ng said implementing this would be an overkill and others may suffer from other problems but are not given leave.

While she may not agree with the granting of special leave, Ng, a lawyer, said she has a special room in her firm for employees to rest.

“Whether they are having menstrual cramps or are new mothers in need of a little bit of rest, they can go there,” she said.

“If they still feel unwell, they can always go to the doctor and ask for sick leave.

“We must always be considerate to each other, as this also ensures a good working relationship between the employer and employee.”

Malaysian Preschool Teachers Association president Sally Ng said employees who are unwell should seek sick leave.

“Nearly 100% of early childhood teachers are women. If we allow for menstrual leave every month, who is going to look after the children as the teachers take turns to go on leave?

“Are we expected to hire more people?” Ng asked.

Most kindergarten classes only have one teacher, and bigger classes will have an additional teaching assistant, she said.

“Also, how do we know between real menstrual pain and those who are just taking advantage?

“As a woman, I know how it feels, and the pain will stop at some point. If it doesn’t, I’ll go see a doctor,” she said.

While she acknowledged that there are those who suffer from excruciating menstrual cramps, Ng said they can get a medical certificate from a doctor.

“We also allow the teachers to modify their lessons if they are unwell,” she added.

Last month, the Human Resources Ministry encouraged government-linked companies and private firms in the country to implement the menstrual leave policy on their own without waiting for the government to legislate it.

However, as a whole, the ministry said it will need to do an in-depth study to ascertain the pros and cons of legislating this matter, taking into account the appropriate mechanisms needed to be put in place to smoothly implement the policy at the company level to prevent any misuse or pitfalls.

Several countries such as Spain, Indonesia, Japan and South Korea have introduced a national menstrual leave policy. – June 12, 2022.