A Gurugram-based entrepreneur recently witnessed a shift in workplace communication when a female employee openly emailed him to say she would be unable to report to the office due to “severe menstrual pain, cramps, and discomfort.”
A Gurugram-based entrepreneur recently witnessed a shift in workplace communication when a female employee openly emailed him to say she would be unable to report to the office due to “severe menstrual pain, cramps, and discomfort.” Jasveer Singh, co-founder and CEO of Knot Dating, shared a screenshot of the email on X, using it as an example of how younger employees are cutting through the diplomatic language traditionally associated with corporate communication.
"Gen Z has killed a lot of unnecessary workplace awkwardness. They are direct and straightforward about almost anything," wrote Singh in an X post.
Reflecting on how dramatically workplace conversations have changed, Singh noted that employees in the past may have been reluctant to explicitly mention menstruation when requesting leave.
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"10 years ago, an email openly saying ‘severe menstrual pain' would have been rare," he added.
What did the Gen Z employee write?
The employee informed her manager that she would be taking the day off because of menstrual pain while assuring him that she would remain reachable for anything urgent.
Subject: On Leave Today
Hi Sir, I won't be able to come to the office today due to severe menstrual pain, cramps, and discomfort. I'll remain available on email and phone if anything urgent comes up. Thanks Knot.dating
‘New reality’ of workplace communication
Singh's post quickly triggered a conversation online, with social media users debating whether such blunt communication reflects a Gen Z phenomenon or a broader transformation in workplace culture.
"My husband gets such messages and emails all the time. Cramps - x - y - z. Guess we have to accept the new reality," said one user.
Another user pointed out that this level of openness is not necessarily unique to Gen Z, arguing that changing workplace cultures have made conversations around health and personal issues more commonplace.
"I don't think it's a Gen Z thing but a work culture shift which Europe already follows. By the way, it's been years have seen such emails; such conversations mostly happen on Teams or Slack."
A fourth user contrasted the approach with that of millennials, suggesting that older employees might have been more likely to disguise the actual reason behind their absence.
“Millennials would probably have written health issues, personal reasons, or not feeling well. Everything except the actual reason.”
