Workshop | Making Menopause Work

Menopause is a natural life stage affecting millions of people, yet it remains a largely invisible issue in most workplaces. In this interactive 90-min workshop, we’ll explore menopause as a critical component of workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion. Drawing from evidence-based recommendations from The Menopause Society, this session will help HR professionals, DEI leaders, and managers understand how menopause interacts with gender equity, age inclusivity, and workplace wellbeing.

Participants will gain insight into the physical, emotional, and cognitive symptoms of menopause and their potential impact on workplace performance and engagement. We’ll explore real-world examples of organizational policies, benefits, and cultural practices that support menopausal employees, including how to create psychologically safe spaces for disclosure and how to equip supervisors with practical guidance.

Through thoughtful discussion and review of case studies, participants will leave with:

• A deeper understanding of menopause.

• Tools to assess how inclusive their current policies and practices are.

• A road map for normalizing menopause conversations in the workplace.

• Strategies to support employees through education, flexible accommodations, and benefits design.

Whether you’re just beginning to think about menopause in your DEI efforts or are looking to expand an existing wellness strategy, this workshop offers practical, inclusive solutions to make menopause work, for everyone.

Kylie Bayer is the Human Resources Director at the Tualatin Valley Water District, where she oversees all things people: talent acquisition, compliance, employee relations, risk management, health and safety, benefits and total rewards, and performance management. Kylie has spent her entire career in the public sector, starting at the Tualatin Hills Park & Recreation District with a strong focus on DEI, before moving on to the City of McMinnville, where she built their HR program from the ground up and served as staff liaison to the City Council’s DEI Advisory Committee.

She holds a master’s in public administration, a bachelor’s in education, and the SHRM-Senior Certified Professional designation. Kylie currently supports national DEI efforts through the American Water Works Association, where she co-chairs the Workforce & Culture Committee developing AWWA’s first-ever DEI standard and chairs the Pacific Northwest Section’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee.

Related to her workshop topic, she’s also a perimenopausal woman navigating hot flashes and policy gaps, making her uniquely qualified to lead this session.