The standard work month—26 days, 8 hours a day—has been around for so long that we assume it’s the only way to structure work. But here’s the catch: this schedule is built around men’s biological rhythms, not women’s. It may have worked when men dominated the workforce, but it no longer suits the realities of today’s diverse workforce. While men’s energy levels generally follow a predictable 24-hour cycle, women’s bodies operate on a 28–40 day cycle, fluctuating through the follicular phase, luteal phase, and menstruation impacting everything from mood and energy levels to cognitive focus and physical stamina. Yet, we often blame women for not fitting into a system that was never designed with their unique rhythms in mind.

What if the workplaces stopped pretending and started working in alignment with women’s biology instead? I propose two possible work month scenarios:

Scenario 1: The Most Effective Approach

A customized 30-day work cycle that aligns with women’s biological rhythm:

(A) 20 days (Follicular Phase & First-Half of Luteal Phase) → High-Moderate Energy → 10-11 hour workdays (with 3 weekly offs)

(B) 10 days (Second-Half of Luteal Phase & Menstruation) → Low-Moderate Energy → 4-hour workdays (with any 3 days off)

This structure ensures that women work more when their energy levels support it and slow down when their bodies demand rest, without compromising total work hours.

Scenario 2: A Less Effective But Still Potential Option

A slight improvement over the standard schedule:

(A) Stick to the standard work month of 8-hour workdays throughout the month and year.

(B) Provide any 2 extra days off in addition to the weekly offs and stipulated casual leaves that women can take at their prerogative (which most likely will be utilised during their pre or during menstruation).

This model provides minimal relief but is easier for the HR community to implement and less radical for the world who is habitual to the existing standard schedule. It assumes that giving women two days off will address their needs without altering the basic work structure.

What do these scenarios offer?

It’s easy to assume that only the first 2-3 days of menstruation are a problem, but the 5-6 days leading up to menstruation are just as challenging. This is when estrogen is low and progesterone is high, preparing the body for pregnancy. This isn’t PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome, which is when the changes are extreme and need special attention); this is a regular shift that every cycling woman experiences. Most women don’t get cramps or headaches only during menstruation. Fatigue, brain fog, and reduced stamina start days before bleeding even begins.

Yet, at workplaces we expect women to perform as if this difference doesn’t exist. Women push through exhaustion, call in sick when they can’t anymore, and feel guilty about it. Truth being told, most women don’t fully grasp the depth of how their hormonal cycles influence their daily life. While this level of ignorance about our own bodies is unacceptable. (The medical research community, educational systems have a lot to answer and change on this. But let’s discuss that in a different article and stay on the work schedule in this one.) Instead of recognizing that some days their bodies will outperform their expectations and on some days, they would have simply given up, women carry the guilt, the confusion, the label of being erratic.

Scenario 2, which provides just two days off, falsely assumes that menstruation is the only phase requiring accommodation. Meaning women still have to work full 8-hour shifts even when their bodies are at their lowest energy levels.

Instead of offering just 2 days of complete rest, Scenario 1 reduces work intensity over a longer period, which is far more effective in keeping women comfortable and productive. With this system, work hours are distributed based on actual........

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