Women shouldn't have to choose between their health and their careers. Peppy CEO Dr Mridula Pore on why the fix lies with workplaces, not women.
Women are leaving the workforce. Not because they want to, but because the support isn't there.
Research shows that 14% of women have had to quit work entirely due to health conditions, while a further 15% have moved to part-time hours[1]. And yet 32% say they're still not receiving adequate employer-led support[1]. The maths is stark: businesses are losing talented people to a problem they have the power to address.
"Women want to stay in work," says Dr Mridula Pore, CEO and Co-Founder of Peppy Health. "But the lack of timely, easy access to care makes it daunting."
The cost of doing nothing
The impact shows up in ways that directly affect the bottom line. Nearly seven in ten women aged 40–60 say menopausal symptoms have had a mostly negative effect on their performance at work[3]. For those going through fertility treatment, 39% have left or considered leaving their job because of inadequate support[4].
This feeds into a much bigger productivity problem. According to Vitality's Britain's Healthiest Workplace report, the average UK employee lost the equivalent of 49.7 days of productive time to absenteeism and presenteeism in 2023[5]. Women's health challenges are a significant, and often overlooked, contributor to that figure.
There's also a longer-term talent risk. When high performers leave because they feel unsupported, the pipeline for future senior leadership quietly empties.
Is your workplace doing enough?
The temptation is to treat women's health as a tick-box exercise – a dedicated awareness day here, a policy update there. But Dr Mridula is clear that this isn't enough.
"Reasonable adjustments need to be acknowledged and integrated into daily operations," she says, not saved for a calendar moment. Training matters too, yet only 8% of employees report that their employer offers training on menopause and mental health[6], and just 19% of employers train managers on supporting staff through fertility treatment[7].
Structural change needs to be backed by culture change. When senior leaders speak openly about their own health experiences, it shifts the atmosphere. "It reduces stigma and helps build trust," says Dr Mridula. Policies create the framework; storytelling makes it real.
Beyond reproductive health
One of the most important things employers can do is broaden their understanding of what women's health means.
"What often gets forgotten are the diseases that disproportionately affect women, such as autoimmune conditions, or those that present differently in women, like cardiovascular disease," says Dr Mridula. Narrowing the conversation to reproductive milestones misses a significant part of the picture.
It's also worth recognising that some of the most challenging moments for women's health aren't moments of illness at all. Fertility journeys, new parenthood, perimenopause – these are predictable phases of life where health is vulnerable but the person isn't necessarily unwell. "Traditional healthcare often relies on once-yearly check-ups," says Dr Mridula, "but managing these conditions requires a clinical companion – ongoing support for daily lifestyle choices."
That's where proactive, always-on support makes a real difference. Access to specialist clinical guidance, education and practical tools – available in the flow of everyday life, not just at an annual appointment – is what allows women to stay well, stay productive and stay in work.
Fixing the workplace, not the woman
The Government's recent launch of gender pay gap and menopause action plans signals that this issue is moving up the agenda. From April 2026, employers with 250 or more employees will be able to voluntarily publish action plans, with mandatory reporting targeted for Spring 2027[2].
But legislation sets a floor, not a ceiling. The employers who will retain the best people are those who move ahead of what's required – who ask not "what do we need to comply with?" but "what do our people actually need?"
"When we foster a culture where leaders understand these challenges," says Dr Mridula, "we move away from a 'fix the women' mindset to fixing the workplace – to be truly inclusive of everyone's biological and life realities."
That shift isn't just the right thing to do. It's better for business.
[1] It pays to support women's health in the workplace, The Guardian, November 2025 [2] Government launches landmark gender pay gap and menopause action plans to help women thrive at work, Gov.uk, March 2026 [3] Menopause in the workplace: employee experiences in 2023, CIPD, October 2023 [4] The impact of fertility, Fertility Matters at Work Report, November 2025 [5] 10 years of Britain's Healthiest Workplace: the changing face of the UK at work, Vitality, 2025 [6] Uncovering menopause and mental health in the workplace: why support can no longer wait, Mental Health UK [7] The impact of fertility, Fertility Matters at Work Report, November 2025