Menopause in the Workplace: A Change to Existing Accommodation Laws or a Reframing of Existing Obligations

In 2025, Rhode Island became the first state to expressly require workplace accommodations for employees experiencing menopause and related medical conditions. Since then, lawmakers in California and several other states have introduced proposals that would amend existing anti‑discrimination, harassment, and accommodation laws to cover menopause and menopause‑related symptoms and treatment. 

For employers, this trend is less about creating entirely new obligations and more about making implicit expectations explicit and eliminating the stigma often associated with menopause. Understanding the intentions of these new laws, and how they fit into existing compliance structures, is key to staying ahead of what may be the next wave of accommodation requirements.

Lawmakers appear to increasingly view menopause through the same lens as pregnancy and related medical conditions: a sex specific life stage that can temporarily affect how work is performed but should not derail employment or stigmatize affected employees. This framing resonates in states such as California that already take an expansive approach to employment protections.

Menopause affects roughly half the workforce at some point, yet it has historically received no attention in employment laws. Advocates argue that this gap has real workplace consequences. Experienced employees may leave the workforce, reduce hours, or face performance scrutiny when experiencing menopause related medical symptoms such as hot flashes, depression, fatigue, headaches, sleep disruption, anxiety, or “brain fog.”

California’s Proposal: Updating the FEHA

In February, California lawmakers introduced Assembly Bill 1940 (AB 1940), which would expressly include perimenopause, menopause, and post‑menopause within the definition of “sex” under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA).

If enacted, the Bill would:

• Make discrimination, harassment, and retaliation based on menopause‑related conditions an unlawful employment practice.

• Reinforce employers’ obligation to engage in the interactive process when menopause‑related symptoms require a workplace accommodation. 

• Require updates to state‑mandated workplace posters and public‑facing education materials to address these conditions.

In short, the Bill would remove any doubt that menopause and menopause related conditions fall within California’s core civil rights framework.

Even without AB 1940, menopause‑related health conditions already trigger accommodation obligations under existing state law. Thus, the practical effect of the bill is to lower the threshold for legal scrutiny related to these specific conditions and increase the likelihood that routine workplace behavior and decisions will be evaluated through a protected‑status lens. 

What This Means for Employers in Practice

The emerging menopause legislation trend is not about dramatic new benefits or extended leaves. Instead, it raises three practical issues for employers.

First, menopause-related accommodation requests may become more common and more explicit. Employees who previously hesitated to request accommodation or report unlawful treatment may feel more comfortable doing so when statutes name and protect menopause directly.

Second, manager training becomes more important. Casual comments, assumptions about age or stamina, or moving directly to performance counseling without human resources (HR) involvement can quickly become risk points if menopause is expressly protected.

Third, documentation and consistency matter more than ever. As with other accommodation scenarios, employers that apply processes unevenly (or skip them altogether) face the greatest risk when new protections are enacted under the FEHA.

What Employers Can Do Now 

Even in states where menopause‑specific laws have not passed, employers may want to examine current practices with respect to the interactive process and accommodation requests. The following is a non-exhaustive list of examples and steps an employer may want to take. 

• Ensure accommodation policies are flexible enough to address intermittent, temporary, or fluctuating conditions such as perimenopause, menopause, and post‑menopause.  

• Confirm managers know when to involve HR rather than pushing forward with discipline for what could be performance issues tied to menopausal symptoms. 

• Review temperature, uniform, scheduling, and break‑related policies for unintended rigidity.

None of these steps require adopting a “menopause policy.” They simply reinforce good accommodation and interactive process practices in an area that is drawing increasing legislative attention.

Looking Ahead

As with pregnancy accommodations a generation ago, what begins as a novel issue often becomes routine. Employers that recognize the trend early and respond thoughtfully will be best positioned to manage both employee needs and legal risk as this area continues to evolve. To that end, employers would be best served by ensuring existing accommodation, anti‑discrimination, and manager‑escalation policies are working as intended and sufficiently flexible to cover temporary medical conditions such as perimenopause, menopause, and post‑menopause-related symptoms.

We will continue to monitor developments in this area. If you have questions about your accommodation practices and related employment policies, or would like assistance reviewing or revising them in light of these decisions, please contact a member of our Labor, Employment & OSHA team or the AFS professional who handles your matters.