Paid Menstrual Leave: L&T Chairman S N Subrahmanyan Announces New Policy For Female Employees

Larsen and Tubro is now offering one paid day of leave to its female employees while they are on their periods. L&T becomes the first private sector company to introduce this menstrual leave policy. The company made this announcement on March 6 at their Women’s Day event in Powai.

A few months ago, L&T Chairman SN Subrahmanyan faced a lot of criticism for endorsing the 90-hour workweek culture. But now, with granting this new leave, the company has taken a good step in the private sector.

The workforce of L&T is around 60,000, and there are 5,000 women a part of this workforce, which is almost 9% of L&T’s staff. However, this policy does not apply to the employees working at L&T’s non-construction units like L&T Finance and L&T Technology Services, as they have work-from-home facilities. While the L&T Operations does not have any flexibility or work-from-home options.

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Specific details of this new initiative remain undetermined as nothing has been announced about when they will start implementing these 12-day annual leaves. The company is yet to announce if these constitute additional paid leave beyond existing entitlements and the permissible timing within the menstrual cycle.

Although menstruation leave is not regulated in India, states like Odisha, Bihar, and Kerala, as well as several organisations like AU Small Finance Bank, Orient Electric, Swiggy, and Zomato, have implemented separate leave policies specifically for women.