The "Menopause-Friendly Employer" Certification Standard

Version 1.0 · Romania · English edition (authoritative Romanian text: metodamidlife.ro/docs/certificare-standard.html) · issued by Metoda Midlife (Antonela Butuc)

1. Purpose and scope

The certification recognises employers in Romania that provide genuine workplace support for employees going through perimenopause and menopause. It is modelled on international accreditation practice — in particular the British five-pillar approach — and adapted to the Romanian context. It is designed as an annual, verifiable, data-backed commitment, not a decorative distinction: every criterion is scored against documented evidence, and the anonymous employee pulse survey acts as a structural check that no amount of paperwork can override.

All programme content connected to the standard is lifestyle education and workplace capability. We support employers and employees; we do not treat, diagnose or provide medical services — anything medical is referred to employees' own physicians.

2. Governance and integrity

A certification is worth exactly as much as the trust in the process behind it. The standard therefore operates under the following public, verifiable rules:

• Separation of consultancy from the certification decision. The score is awarded exclusively against the criteria published in this document plus the anonymous employee survey — which neither the employer nor the issuer can edit. Whether a company has purchased the issuer's advisory programme has no bearing on the score: same evidence, same thresholds, for everyone.
• Standalone assessment route. Companies may commission the certification assessment without any consultancy: RON 6,000–9,000 (≈ €1,200–1,800) for the full evidence review, employee survey and scored report. This route exists precisely so that certification never depends on buying advice from the certifier.
• Employee voice is the real veto. Pillar 4 rests on the anonymous-by-design survey (no identifiers, aggregate-only reporting, hard n≥5 threshold — see the security fact sheet). Scores cannot be "polished" by the employer or the assessor.
• Independent advisory committee. The standard is supervised by an advisory committee — a physician specialising in women's health and an HR / employment-law specialist — which reviews the criteria annually and hears appeal cases. {{Named membership — to be published at metodamidlife.ro/registru.html before the first award}}.
• Appeals. A company may appeal its score within 30 days of the report; the disputed criteria are re-assessed on the basis of evidence, with the advisory committee reviewing contested cases.
• Revocation. Certification is withdrawn for misuse of the badge or for substantiated, confirmed reports of practices contrary to the pillars — with a right of reply — and the company is removed from the public register.
• Transparency and versioning. Criteria, thresholds and the register of certified companies are public. Standard versions are numbered; companies are assessed against the version in force on the assessment date.

3. The five pillars and their criteria

Each criterion is scored: 0 — absent · 1 — partial / informal · 2 — implemented and documented. Maximum score: 40.

Pillar 1 — Culture (max. 8 pts)

1. Leadership has explicitly and internally communicated its commitment to the subject.
2. At least one awareness session for staff within the last 12 months.
3. The subject can be raised openly; management does not tolerate mockery of it.
4. A clear message that asking for support does not affect performance evaluation or promotion.

Pillar 2 — Policies & practices (max. 8 pts)

1. A written policy (or dedicated policy section) covering menopause / women's health.
2. The policy is communicated and easy to find.
3. Concrete adjustments are available: flexibility, breaks, working from home when needed.
4. Medical appointments are neither penalised nor interrogated.

Pillar 3 — Training (max. 8 pts)

1. Managers have completed dedicated training within the last 24 months.
2. Managers know which adjustments they can approve directly.
3. HR holds a written conversation guide for sensitive situations.
4. New-manager onboarding includes the essential material.

Pillar 4 — Engagement (max. 8 pts)

1. A named contact person / confidential channel exists and is communicated internally.
2. Feedback is collected in a structured way through an anonymous survey (at least annually).
3. Survey results generate actions that are communicated back to employees.
4. Employees have access to dedicated resources (sessions, materials, a support programme).

Pillar 5 — Working environment (max. 8 pts)

1. Control over — or alternatives to — workplace temperature.
2. Easy access to cold water and adequate sanitary facilities.
3. Dress code / uniforms with flexibility to adapt.
4. A quiet withdrawal space is available.

Application notes (not additional criteria): (a) at companies with an occupational-health physician, including menopause in the health-surveillance dialogue and — where relevant — in the OSH risk assessment counts as strong evidence for criteria 5.1–5.4, in line with approaches used in Ireland (HSA) and Japan; (b) policies covering the full cycle of reproductive health (menstruation → perimenopause → menopause), on the model of the British standard BS 30416, receive full marks on criterion 2.1 and are explicitly encouraged; (c) for production, retail and shift-based roles, criteria are assessed against role-appropriate equivalents — e.g. shift-swap access instead of working from home, cooling zones or micro-break protocols on a production line, uniform-fabric alternatives in retail. An office-only reading of the criteria is treated as incomplete evidence at mixed-workforce sites.

4. Certification thresholds

The pillar minimum is deliberate: a company cannot compensate for a hostile culture with an excellent air-conditioning system, or vice versa. All five pillars must clear the floor.

5. Evidence expectations

A score of 2 requires evidence that is documented, dated and verifiable. Typical evidence per pillar:

6. The assessment process

1. Self-assessment (free online tool) — initial orientation against the criteria.
2. Formal assessment: verification of the criteria against documented evidence (written policy, training materials, internal communications) + the anonymous employee pulse survey.
3. Report & decision: pillar-by-pillar scores, strengths, gaps; certification is awarded if the thresholds are met.
4. Annual renewal: re-survey, refresher session, re-verification of the criteria. Year-on-year scores feed the benchmark report — renewal is a working ritual, not a rubber stamp: lapsed evidence (e.g. training older than 24 months) loses its points at renewal exactly as it would at first assessment.

7. Mapping to BS 30416:2023 and the UK Menopause Friendly accreditation

For groups that already work with the British standard BS 30416:2023 (Menstruation, menstrual health and menopause in the workplace) or hold the UK Menopause Friendly accreditation, the table below shows how our pillars read across — so your Romanian site can report upward in the framework your HQ already uses.

8. Use of the badge

• The badge is displayed with its year of validity (e.g. "Menopause-Friendly Employer 2027") on websites, careers pages, email signatures and ESG / D&I reports.
• It may not be used after expiry, nor in contexts suggesting that unassessed group entities are certified.
• Certified companies appear in the public register on metodamidlife.ro.
• Misuse triggers withdrawal of the certification and removal from the register.

9. Commissioning an assessment

Routes in: the Annual Certification Partner package (RON 18,000–30,000/yr ≈ €3,600–6,000 — includes the programme, certification and annual benchmark) or the standalone assessment (RON 6,000–9,000 ≈ €1,200–1,800 — evidence review, survey and scored report only, no consultancy). Details and the full service ladder: metodamidlife.ro/en/corporate-services.html. Data-protection questions are answered in the security & data-protection fact sheet; company facts for vendor onboarding are in the vendor fact sheet.

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"Menopause-Friendly Employer" Certification Standard v1.0 · English edition · Metoda Midlife · www.metodamidlife.ro