Spain passes law giving women with painful periods paid leave from work

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) - Spanish lawmakers passed a new reproductive rights law Thursday, which includes Europe’s first-ever specific paid menstrual leave.

The controversial bill was passed by a margin of 185 to 154 and will take effect in the coming days.

“It’s not over when this law takes effect. There will be resistance … so we’ll have to work hard to ensure it is being applied at all levels,” said Equality Minister Irene Montero.

Crippling periods will be treated as other medical conditions where workers are entitled to receive paid time off.

Spain’s social security system will foot the bill to “eliminate biases” around hiring women.

To qualify, women will need a note from a doctor confirming that they have severe menstrual pain due to a diagnosed condition that renders them unable to work.

Women who suffer miscarriages or have abortions and are unable to work will also be entitled to paid leave.

The pioneering labor right is part of a broader modification to Spain’s abortion law, which also now allows girls to get abortions without parental permission from the age of 16.

It also eliminates the mandatory three-day reflection period between requesting and receiving an abortion, which exists under current legislation.

The modified law also makes quality sexual education obligatory in schools.