The digital storefront GOG, formerly known as Good Old Games, recently announced that it will offer its employees menstrual leave, giving anyone suffering from excessive menstrual pain or other complications extra free. This makes the studio one of the first companies in the gaming industry to offer such an advantage to its employees. Its parent company, CD Projekt Red, is also considering offering similar leave options.
As first seen by Axiosthe Polish company announced on LinkedIn April 1st that it should start offering extra paid time off to all affected employees. It told a spokesman for GOG Axios they estimate that it will constitute an extra day per. quarter for employees who use the free time. But also told the store that staff are free to take more time off “when menstrual cramps occur.” Employees can also choose to simply take a few hours off rather than full days.
“Menstrual leave promotes inclusiveness by accepting that there are biological differences in the workplace,” GOG wrote in the LinkedIn post announcing the new plan. “By granting additional days off to those who experience menstrual cramps, we recognize that these symptoms are real.”
Implementing menstrual leave is another step towards making GOG an even more inclusive workplace, and we will not stop in our continuous efforts to learn, reflect and improve on how we can do better for all our team members.
This was told by GOG’s head of culture and communication Gabriela Siemienkowicz Axios that the new policy is “experimental” and that throughout 2022 the company will evaluate how these extra days off “affect the well-being of GOG employees”. Then the storefront can “expand the policy” next year, although there are no details on what that might entail.
Kotaku has contacted GOG for a comment.
Siemienkowicz also told Axios that politics was inspired by her own experiences, and that during a “Women of GOG” meeting, she brought up the subject and found that other employees had similar stories and experiences.
“We shared the same view on this matter,” Siemienkowicz said. “And would appreciate the opportunity to simply lie down and keep most of the day off without sacrificing one of the regular paid days of absence we have available all year.”
GOG’s parent company, CD Projekt Red, told PC gamer that it is also considering adopting a similar policy in the future.