Pink October: How companies can collaborate with women

October is almost over, but it's never too late to talk about a campaign as important as Pink October.

What is the importance of the Pink October campaign within a company?

As mentioned in the introduction, we need to understand the responsibility of everyone in the Pink October campaign, not just the women themselves. And why does a company need to pay attention to this importance?

Why do companies, employers, and leaders need to mobilize and offer these women the time and resources to take care of themselves?

Yes, this may seem like something that shouldn't even need mentioning, but unfortunately, the reality of the job market for women is still not entirely conducive to them having the means to seek preventative care.

When the woman is the breadwinner of the family.

If you still don't understand, let's give an example: a woman who needs to work 8 hours a day, take care of the children, take care of the house, and often earn extra income to help with family expenses, will hardly think about herself enough to set aside a few days a year to have routine checkups, such as a visit to the gynecologist, which is so important.

How many women do you know who are currently living this reality?

And in most of these cases, the woman is responsible for providing some of the supplies the family needs, or she is even the one who maintains her home.

To close our eyes to this reality is to ignore the Pink October campaign, and thus, it completely loses its meaning.

A woman's health ultimately reflects the life she lives and the people around her. So how can those who live with a woman help her take care of herself?

That's what we'll be talking about in the next few topics.

What can employers do for women during Breast Cancer Awareness Month (October)?

But ultimately, what can these leaders do for the women who work at their company?

The first thing to do is to encourage internal public policies to show female employees the importance of taking care of their own health. This can be done in several ways, such as:

Lectures with healthcare professionals;
Printed materials in common areas of companies;
Small gifts as a memento of this campaign, such as a bow-shaped button, for example;
Infographics teaching self-examination;
Some weekly reminders about the importance of the Pink October campaign.

This type of attitude encourages women to feel an increasing need to consult with a specialist, perform self-exams, and maintain their health.

In the meantime, it's also important to highlight the importance of maintaining healthy habits, drinking enough water every day, and exercising frequently.

But that's not enough.

However, we know that when it comes to the job market, not everything is very favorable for women.

So, we know that even if all these measures are taken, it's possible that the employer won't allow her to take a day off work, for example, to have these exams done. And that's where the reason for this text comes in.

Internal awareness policies need to be connected to a coherent organizational culture that provides space and support for this employee to feel comfortable exercising her right to take care of her own health.

The reality is different.

This October, during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a post on LinkedIn caught the attention of many users. In the post, a young woman shared that she was battling cancer and had decided to quit her job.

She said that as soon as she received the sad news that she was ill, she told her employers and felt supported during such a delicate time, when she really needed that support.

The problem was that over time, and with the treatments causing very strong side effects, she realized that the organizational climate was no longer the same and that the demands continued in such a way that she felt bad for being there, believing she was bothering people.

Finally, she resigned to focus on her health and realized that, unfortunately, all the overtime she had worked and all the extra time she had dedicated to the company had not been compensated for at this moment when she needs more time for herself.

So, the lesson is that often the Pink October campaign, and so many others, are beautiful in theory, but in practice, it's quite different. This shows that most institutions are not, in fact, prepared to defend this initiative.

Why employers can't ignore the Pink October campaign.

Leaders cannot ignore the fact that women are increasingly independent, freed from an oppressive past, and are often the breadwinners for their families. This means they represent a significant portion of the workforce.

Ignoring this means setting aside an important workforce that makes a difference in all institutions. That's why the Pink October campaign is so important: it draws attention to them and brings issues from this niche to the forefront, so they can be resolved and corrected over time.

How about now giving this cause the support it deserves?