How much is menopause costing STEM-led organisations?

In this inaugural episode, Rebecca explores the significant financial and operational impact menopause has on STEM-led organizations.

With roughly 1 in 10 women leaving the workforce due to menopause symptoms, male-dominated fields are disproportionately losing critical senior talent, institutional knowledge, and future role models.

Addressing this turnover isn't just an HR priority, it is a vital commercial necessity for maintaining innovation, leadership pipelines, and employer reputation.

Key Takeaways

• Underrepresented Baselines: Women make up a small fraction of the STEM workforce—ranging from ~13-14% in construction to ~22% in nuclear—making talent retention vital.
• The High Cost of Replacement: Replacing a senior professional can cost between 50% to 200% of their annual salary, making unmanaged attrition commercially unsustainable.
• Loss of Organizational Memory: Losing experienced female leaders deprives incoming talent of essential role models and drains valuable historical knowledge from the business.
• Innovation at Risk: Diverse leadership drives innovative problem-solving; losing senior women directly impacts a firm's competitive edge.
• Reputational & Legal Consequences: Unaddressed workplace barriers can lead to tribunal risks - linking menopause with protected characteristics which may include age, disability, sex, and gender reassignment, reputational fallout, and how candidates vet workplace culture via industry networks, poor Glassdoor reviews, and long-term damage to employer branding.

Rebecca is interviewed by journalist Steve Randall.