Rhode Island Becomes First State to Mandate Workplace Accommodations for Menopause

In June 2025, Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee signed into law House Bill No. 6161, making Rhode Island the first state in the nation to expressly require employers to provide workplace accommodations for applicants and employees experiencing menopause and related medical conditions. These accommodations must be legally met unless the employer can demonstrate that the accommodation would pose an undue hardship on the employer’s business operations.

This groundbreaking legislation amends the section of the Rhode Island Fair Employment Practices Act requiring employers to provide a reasonable accommodation for an applicant’s or employee’s condition related to pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions. Now, that will also include accommodation of menopause and related medical conditions, effective as of June 24, 2025.

The law amends the definition of “related conditions” to include “the need to manage the effects of vasomotor symptoms”—commonly referred to as “hot flashes” and “night sweats.”

Effective June 24, 2025, employers are now required to engage in a timely, good-faith, and interactive process to identify “reasonable accommodations” for individuals whose menopause symptoms impact their ability to perform essential job functions. Notably, reasonable accommodations are required under the Rhode Island Fair Employment Practices Act even if the employee or applicant is not disabled by menopause or a related medical condition.

For a worker experiencing menopause symptoms, “reasonable accommodations” may include telework, a modified work schedule, taking more frequent or longer breaks, time off for medical appointments, temporary transfer to a less strenuous position, job restructuring, light duty, or closer access to a bathroom.

For decades, menopause accommodations have long been overlooked. That’s in spite of the fact that the condition impacts nearly half the population.

An estimated 85% of people experience symptoms such as mood swings, migraines, hot flashes, insomnia, anxiety, night sweats, and more during menopause. For some, those symptoms can be severe, however, until now, no state has legally acknowledged the condition in the workplace.

Senator Lori Urso testified before the Rhode Island Senate Committee on Labor this past spring, acknowledging that menopause remains an awkward topic largely due to stigma.

Emphasizing the need to treat menopause as a workplace equity and health issue, Urso stressed that employers “can no longer afford to lose women workers who are at the peak of their institutional knowledge.”

And all the data points to support Urso’s point.

Most women suffer through menopause symptoms at work without support.

A recent survey of 1,039 women between the ages of 40 and 65 found that 73% of women weren’t treating their symptoms, meaning many were suffering through menopause at work.

When asked whether they felt supported by their employer to manage menopause symptoms, the majority of respondents (52%) did not answer the question. Of those who did respond:

• 17% said they were not supported
• 10% felt slightly supported
• 9% felt supported
• 8% felt moderately supported
• 4% felt extremely supported

The ACLU of Rhode Island highlighted the importance of the proposed legislation in a press release before its passage.

“Menopause is a natural and common phase in the lives of millions of individuals, but its impact and symptoms can have profound and long-lasting effects on a person’s health and daily life,” said Madalyn McGunagle, policy associate at the Rhode Island ACLU.

McGunagle continued, “The ACLU of Rhode Island supports this bill, which would make explicit that employers must provide reasonable accommodations to employees experiencing menopause, just as the law currently requires accommodations for various pregnancy-related conditions. By extending protections to those experiencing menopause, we can ensure that they are given the necessary accommodations to continue performing their jobs effectively.”