Petition 1865, which closed for signatures on Monday, received a total of 4,854 signatures. Its author Ornella Romito wrote in the petition, “Lack of energy and fatigue play a big role and these two elements are those that we essentially need to be able to work in an exemplary way.”

While some countries like Japan, South Korea and Indonesia have already implemented period leave policies, in 2021 not a single EU country had one. An India-based food company, Zomato, sparked fresh debate on the topic in August last year when it implemented such a policy for its female and transgender employees. But the topic has remained broadly controversial, with questions surrounding the social and economic implications, especially at country-level. 

According to RTL, UEL director Jean-Paul Olinger estimated that if every woman took advantage of a monthly two-day leave policy--such as the one proposed in petition 1865--this would result in 10% less labour power.  

Nevertheless, Romito declares the pain of menstruation--which can include other symptoms such as headache, diarrhea and more--is “significantly underestimated”.