Spanish women are set to be given time off work for severe period pain as legislation is passed to allow additional sick leave.
Spanish MPs have voted on Thursday, February 16 to provide paid medical leave to women suffering from severe period pain.
The law, which passed by 185 votes in favour to 154 against, is aimed at breaking a taboo on the subject, the government said.
‘It is a historic day for feminist progress,’ Equality Minister Irene Montero tweeted ahead of votes on a number of feminist-inspired pieces of legislation.
The law entitles workers experiencing period pain to as much time off as they need, with the state social security system – not employers – picking up the tab for the sick leave.
As with paid leave for other health reasons, a doctor must approve the temporary medical incapacity.
The length of sick leave that doctors will be able to grant to women suffering from painful periods has not been specified in the new law.
About a third of women who menstruate suffer from severe pain, according to the Spanish Gynaecology and Obstetrics Society.
The measure has created divisions among both politicians and unions, with the UGT, one of Spain‘s largest trade unions, warning it could stigmatise women in the workplace and favour the recruitment of men.
The main opposition, conservative Popular Party (PP), also warned the law risks ‘stigmatising’ women and could have ‘negative consequences in the labour market’ for them.
‘Menstrual leave’ is one of the key measures in the broader legislation, which also provides for increased access to abortion in public hospitals.
Less than 15 per cent of abortions performed in the country take place in such institutions, mainly because of conscientious objections by doctors.
The new law also allows minors to have abortions without parental permission at 16 and 17 years of age, reversing a requirement introduced by a previous conservative government in 2015.
It was introduced on March 3, 2022, and former Minister for Equality Angela Rodriguez said it was past time for a discussion on reproductive health.
Lawmakers also approved a law letting anyone 16 and over change the gender on their ID card even as similar measures elsewhere have sparked division over the complexities of the issue.
The law, which passed by 191 votes in favour, 60 against with 91 abstentions, makes Spain one of the few nations to allow people to change their gender on their national identity card with a simple declaration.
