The studio behindThe Witcher 3andCyberpunk 2077, CD Projekt Red, proudly took to social media recently to state that they had won the Diversity Charter Award for Menstrual Leave benefit in the category of “Innovative Approach to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Business”. This comes after a statement last year revealing that the company would be offering menstrual leave to employees as of late March 2023.
As we strive for diversity in all areas of the game industry, which includes a better workplace culture, higher wages, no crunch, and a flexible four-day week,CD Projekt Red’s initiative has unfairly come under fire, which proves that we still have a much longer road in front of us when it comes to the collective consciousness of the gaming community.
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There’s A Blinding Lack Of Understanding Surrounding Menstrual Leave
Firststarted by GOGin 2022 after its manager Gabriela Siemienkowicz, alongside other employees who discussed having similar menstruation difficulties during a meeting, the concept of menstrual leave isn’t a new idea as its history dates back to the 20th century (taken from this great article byGamesIndustry). In Japan, an employer is obliged to grant menstruating people days off, and in the case of Korea, employees may receive additional pay if the leave is not taken.
The discussion around periods and, god forbid talking about blood unless of course, it’s in an epic popular video game, has been an uncomfortable topic for those who don’t menstruate. This unwillingness has obviously led to a lack of education and understanding surrounding this very basic human function. In the comment section of CD Projekt Red’s post, which is frankly disturbing and shocking, to say the least, it seems as though the main takeaway from the studio’s positive diversity statement is that allowing those who menstruate time off is nothing but a huge “joke” and by implementing this structure, the company will “now go under”.
I’ve heard a lot of ridiculous remarks in my life, but honestly, these not only make me angry but also incredibly tired. They don’t even try to hide the fact that they foam at their mouths with hate at the idea of anyone receiving a benefit that not only makes those who menstruates work-life better, hence being able to focus on creating even greater games, but that they can’t get it too because “WoMeN”. Many of the comments from “fans” are stuck on the idea that menstrual leave shouldn’t exist because it’s unfair to men who then have to “pick up the workload” from these entitled women who are swanning off to have a lovely day on their couches while the poor guys are swamped to the eyeballs.
A Privilege To A Group Doesn’t Take Your Rights Away
Firstly, 90% of people don’t suffer terribly from menstrual symptoms - I know it would be a shock for them to hear this, but not every person who has a period is the same gasp, so this much-needed benefit would mostly affect those within that 20% bracket whose menstrual experience prevents them from functioning daily, such as horrific nausea, extreme abdominal/back pain, and fatigue and especially people who haveDysmenorrheaandEndometriosis. You know, these things that actually cannot be helped.
“What a damn joke”
“So that means women are less productive at CDProjektRED?”
“We discovered why the wage gap exists.”
“Thank you for killing the Witcher 4 hype before I even consider a preorder.”
Secondly, women and those who menstruate do not want to take time off, they want to be working, and in countries where this type of leave is granted, the use of this benefit is low, which is usually due to the shame they may endure in front of, largely, male bosses and the fear of being fired - a very genuine concern these days.
Even just looking at CD Projekt Red’s social post shows that only 39% of eligible REDs have taken menstrual leave at least once and on a monthly average, 11.3% of eligible REDs use this benefit, indicating that it’s very much still on the lower end of the spectrum regarding its usage. Something that these commenters who spout “But what about the men, what do we get?” need to remember is that just because a company has given a privilege to a group in need does not mean that those rights are then snatched away from other employees, sick leave is available to everyone.
Not only is Menstrual Leave a fantastic benefit for employees, which has been shown by other companies who tested this strategy that additional days off have not been abused, but also for employers. Offering this type of company benefit not only creates a great incentive within the team morale, which in turn benefits everyone, but it also offers a droplet of hope in the driest desert of game industry diversity, because if these comments are anything to go by, we need a hell of a lot more help.
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