In Some Countries, Women Get Days Off for Period Painbr Japan has offered menstrual leave policies since 1947, when a law was passed allowing anybr woman with painful periods, or whose job might exacerbate period pain, to take time off.br This month, the company put in place a "menstrual leave policy," allowing women to takebr a paid day off during their period without dipping into sick days or vacation time.br While it is important to acknowledge their experiences, Ms. Martin said, a menstrualbr leave policy does more than that: It brands every woman who menstruates as ill.br " she said. that If the world had no men, if there were only women working, nobody would have been up in arms about a ‘first day of period’ leave,br It would be better, she said, to develop an overall leave policy for menbr and women to take time off for a host of reasons, including chronic medical conditions.br " she said.