Gabriela urges Lacson to empathize, refrain from insensitive remarks on menstrual leave

Gabriela Women's Party urged former Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson to "listen to why women are demanding a paid menstrual leave" instead of issuing an insensitive comment out of nowhere.

Gabriela's comments were made after the former senator tweeted his reactions to the proposed House Bill 7758.

"Maternity leave, paternity leave, and now, menstrual leave - all with pay. Next time, a legislative measure will be filed mandating menopause and andropause allowances to increase the testosterone levels of workers," Lacson said Friday.

Gabriela, in their response to Lacson said, "We wish the former senator could have listened and empathized more to women instead of issuing an insensitive comment out of nowhere."

The women's party added that paid menstrual leave for female workers and employees was "both a matter of women's health and productivity improvement."

"For the longest time, women are working through their monthly period pain, which according to several studies translate to a sizeable number of days of lost productivity, aside from additional healthcare costs due to over-the-counter medication," it said.

"The experience of throbbing pain and other symptoms during women's monthly periods is not something which women made up – it is a shared reality which women have to endure on a monthly basis," it said.

As for the argument men should also be granted testosterone-boosting leaves to make it "equal," Gabriela said this line of thinking trivialized women's pain. — DVM, GMA Integrated News