Houses of Parliament, London - 30th June 2026.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Endometriosis has launched an inquiry into endometriosis in the workplace. Chairing the second oral evidence session, Kirsteen Sullivan MP (Bathgate and Linlithgow) opened the meeting with a focus on the challenges private sector employers face in supporting employees with endometriosis.
The session featured many professional insights, with one attendee sharing how employers are often unsure on how to approach conversations about endometriosis and may avoid them altogether due to fear of saying the wrong thing. Another attendee shared that some female employees feel constrained in their careers, fearing that pursuing a promotion may mean moving to a manager who is less knowledgeable or understanding of their condition. The participants agreed that there was a desire for action amongst employers, however there was a lack of confidence or guidance about how to proceed, often leading to a lack of progress.
This evidence session is one of many sessions of the parliamentary inquiry, which will run until October and provide further opportunities to closely scrutinise how businesses and workplaces support those living with endometriosis.
Speaking after the session, Ms Sullivan said: "Thank you to all the women who took the time to participate in today's evidence session. It was invaluable to hear directly about the challenges employers face in supporting employees with endometriosis and adenomyosis. I hear time and again how women's experiences of these conditions are too often ignored, minimised or misunderstood and today's discussion highlighted how this can extend into the workplace with good practice being overwhelmingly led by those with lived experience but very much on a voluntary basis."
The session concluded with a clear consensus among attendees that employers and managers must be better trained to understand the needs of those living with endometriosis. Alongside the need for clear and consistent workplace policies, there was also a lack of confidence and knowledge as to how existing workplace policies can work to better support women in the workplace.
Chaired by Kirsteen Sullivan MP for Bathgate and Linlithgow, the session focused specifically on the challenges faced by private sector employers. Evidence presented to the inquiry painted a familiar pattern: employers who want to do the right thing but are unsure how to approach conversations about endometriosis, sometimes avoiding them altogether for fear of saying something wrong. Women, meanwhile, reported feeling constrained in their own career progression — reluctant to pursue promotions that might mean moving to a manager less knowledgeable or sympathetic about their condition.
The consensus among attendees was clear: good practice exists, but it is overwhelmingly driven by individuals with lived experience of endometriosis, operating on a voluntary basis rather than through consistent employer policy. The desire to act is there. The confidence and guidance to do so is not.
Speaking after the session, Kirsteen Sullivan MP said the discussion had highlighted how women's experiences of endometriosis are too often ignored, minimised or misunderstood — and that this extends directly into the workplace. She thanked participants for their evidence and underlined the need for employers and managers to be better trained to understand the needs of those living with the condition.
The inquiry will continue until October, with further evidence sessions examining how businesses and workplaces across different sectors are — or are not — meeting the needs of employees with endometriosis. The findings will inform parliamentary scrutiny and, campaigners hope, concrete action on workplace policy.
Endometriosis affects roughly one in ten women and those assigned female at birth, yet diagnosis takes an average of eight years in the UK. For many, the condition does not stop at the clinic door — its impact on working life is significant, and too often invisible to those in a position to help.
