Hormone health can affect how people feel, perform and progress throughout their working lives - not only during menopause. Yet many employees continue to manage symptoms without the understanding, language or practical support they need at work.
Our new report draws on an anonymous survey of 5,592 women, conducted between March and May 2026. It explores respondents’ experiences of hormone-related symptoms at work and what those experiences could mean for employers, HR leaders, people teams and senior decision-makers. The findings are self-reported and reflect the experiences of this survey sample rather than all women.
Among respondents, 79% said hormone-related symptoms had affected their work participation or career decisions, while 76% reported being held back by symptoms while continuing to work. One in four had avoided applying for a promotion, and almost one in four had left a role or organisation because of their symptoms.
The report also identifies a significant workplace support gap. Nearly three-quarters of respondents had never received hormone health training at work, more than half were unaware of any relevant workplace guidance, and one in four would not feel comfortable discussing symptoms with their manager.
These findings point to an issue that may not be fully visible through absence data alone. They suggest that hormone health can influence employee wellbeing, confidence, performance, progression and staff retention often while people remain at work.
Effective menopause support at work is important, but employers also need to consider women’s health in the workplace across the full working lifecycle. Balance@Work helps organisations move beyond awareness through clinically informed education, workplace hormone health training, manager development, leadership engagement and practical routes to support.
Click the 'download' button below to explore the full report findings, and practical recommendations for employers.
Then take our short quiz assessment to understand where your organisation is today and identify the next step towards a more informed, inclusive and supportive workplace.
A new survey has revealed that 28% of women have considered leaving the workforce altogether because of their hormone-related symptoms, highlighting the significant impact that menopause, perimenopause and hormone conditions including PMDD and PCOS / PMOS can have on workplace participation and staff retention. The research was published today by Balance@Work as part of their Hormone Health at Work report, which aims to show how hormone-related symptoms may affect performance, participation, and career decisions in women long before they appear in workplace absence or attrition data.
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79% said hormone-related symptoms had affected their work participation or career decisions, while 24% had already left a role or organisation because of hormone health.
