--- description: Find out why some say Italy's proposal to offer paid menstrual leave court hurt women's economic prospects. title: Italian Lawmakers Want to Implement Paid Menstrual Leave image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf596b949be91e03d/6988c03bcd1bba4bfa7047aa/women-period-menstruation.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [motto](/tag/motto/) ## motto Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Italian Lawmakers Want to Implement Paid Menstrual Leave  by [Samantha Cooney](/author/samantha-cooney/)  ## Samantha Cooney Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 28, 2017 4:33 PM CUT  Period pain relief feminine menstruation hygiene set illustration Period pain relief feminine menstruation hygiene set illustrationFlavio Coelho—Getty Images  by [Samantha Cooney](/author/samantha-cooney/)  ## Samantha Cooney Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 28, 2017 4:33 PM CUT Italy is considering offering women paid [menstrual leave](http://motto.time.com/4245067/period-leave/ "undefined"), the Washington _Post_ [reports](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/03/24/giving-italian-women-menstrual-leave-may-backfire-on-their-job-prospects/?utm%5Fterm=.224f65436a01 "undefined"). Four female Democratic lawmakers introduced legislation into parliament that would give women up to three paid days off work each month for their periods. [Zambia,](http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-38490513 "undefined") [Indonesia](http://www.marketwatch.com/story/italy-mulls-joining-japan-and-indonesia-in-offering-paid-menstrual-leave-2017-03-27 "undefined"), [Japan](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/mar/04/period-policy-asia-menstrual-leave-japan-women-work "undefined"), [South Korea](http://www.shape.com/blogs/shape-your-life/would-you-want-paid-menstrual-leave "undefined") and some [provinces](http://www.china.org.cn/china/2016-02/16/content%5F37800348.htm "undefined") in China already have some sort of menstrual leave policy in place. A [U.K. company](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/mar/02/uk-company-introduce-period-policy-female-staff "undefined") made headlines last year when it announced plans to adopt one. The Italian proposal has received mixed reactions. _Marie Claire_‘s Italian edition dubbed it the “a standard-bearer of progress and social sustainability,” [according](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/03/24/giving-italian-women-menstrual-leave-may-backfire-on-their-job-prospects/?utm%5Fterm=.e3728d1b3479 "undefined") to the _Post_. But some critics say the proposal might do more harm than good by discouraging employers from hiring women. “The demand for female employees among companies might decrease, or women could be further penalised both in terms of salary and career advancement,” Daniela Piazzalunga, an economist at research institute FBK-IRVAPP, told the _Post_ in an email. **_Read More:_** [_A History of How Employers Have Addressed Women’s Periods_](http://motto.time.com/4246662/period-policies-at-work/ "undefined") Italy [ranked](http://reports.weforum.org/global-gender-gap-report-2016/economies/#economy=ITA "undefined") only 117 out of 150 144 countries for economic participation and opportunity in the World Economic Forum’s 2016 Global Gender Gap report. Despite having [a progressive maternity leave policy](http://time.com/3916511/parental-leave-map/ "undefined") that gives women 22 weeks off at 80% pay, a study from the country’s bureau of statistics showed that about one-fourth of women lost their jobs during or immediately after pregnancy. \[[The Washington _Post_](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/03/24/giving-italian-women-menstrual-leave-may-backfire-on-their-job-prospects/?utm%5Fterm=.224f65436a01 "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4714991/italy-lawmakers-paid-menstrual-leave/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4714991/italy-lawmakers-paid-menstrual-leave/"},"headline":"Italian Lawmakers Want to Implement Paid Menstrual Leave","datePublished":"2017-03-28T16:33:13.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T09:05:17.102Z","description":"Some say the policy could hurt women","url":"https://time.com/4714991/italy-lawmakers-paid-menstrual-leave/","keywords":["motto"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf596b949be91e03d/6988c03bcd1bba4bfa7047aa/women-period-menstruation.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Samantha Cooney","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/samantha-cooney/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf596b949be91e03d/6988c03bcd1bba4bfa7047aa/women-period-menstruation.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Modern Menstruation - absorbent, tampon, reusable period cup and hot water bottle","caption":"Modern Menstruation - absorbent, tampon, reusable period cup and hot water bottle","creditText":"Flavio Coelho—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/motto/","name":"motto"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4714991/italy-lawmakers-paid-menstrual-leave/","name":"Italian Lawmakers Want to Implement Paid Menstrual Leave"}}]}] ```