As more women take the wheel in New Zealand's transport industry, fleet safety specialist AutoSense is calling on employers to recognise an often-overlooked contributor to workplace fatigue - menopause.

To coincide with October's Menopause Awareness Month, AutoSense has launched a new workplace education seminar, available to book as an in-person session or webinar, to help businesses better understand menopause and its potential impact on sleep, fatigue and workplace performance. 

The initiative comes as Transporting New Zealand's 2025 Road Transport Workforce Report reveals female truck driver numbers have more than doubled in the decade to 2023. Yet women still represent just six percent of the country's truck driving workforce. 

AutoSense Fatigue and Sleep Specialist Katrina Aubrey says that as the industry works to attract and retain more women, employers also need to consider their changing health and wellbeing needs. 

"Menopause is a natural part of life, but some of its symptoms can have a very real impact on how women feel and function at work. Disrupted sleep, fatigue and difficulties with concentration can be particularly challenging in roles requiring sustained alertness, such as driving."

While menopause is commonly associated with hot flushes and night sweats, symptoms can also include insomnia, anxiety, brain fog and persistent tiredness. For women working long hours, irregular shifts or early starts, managing these symptoms alongside workplace demands can be especially challenging.

AutoSense's new seminar aims to address this knowledge gap, exploring the changes women may experience during perimenopause and menopause, including their effects on sleep, energy levels and concentration. It offers practical guidance on recognising and managing fatigue, improving sleep and supporting women through this stage of life. 

Designed for employees, managers and workplace health and safety teams, the sessions can be delivered in person or as a live webinar, with bookings now open for dates following October.

Katrina says the seminar grew out of conversations with women attending AutoSense's fatigue education sessions, who frequently approach her afterwards to discuss their own experiences of menopause.

"After nearly every Alert at Work seminar I present, I usually have one or two women approach me wanting to chat about their menopause symptoms, particularly sleep and fatigue. It's these conversations that prompted me to create the menopause webinar in the first place." 

A registered clinical sleep and respiratory physiologist technician with more than 23 years' experience across medical and surgical healthcare fields, Katrina specialises in sleep health and workplace fatigue management.

Through her work, she has observed that fatigue, poor sleep and brain fog are not always caused by menopause, even when women are experiencing menopausal symptoms.

"Women often present differently with sleep apnoea compared to men. Rather than the typical loud snoring and breathing pauses, women may experience fatigue, poor sleep, brain fog and constant exhaustion," she says. 

A 2026 review published in The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology & Women's Health[2] found that obstructive sleep apnoea becomes significantly more prevalent in women after menopause, highlighting the importance of identifying sleep disorders that may otherwise go undiagnosed.

Katrina says that when she suspects sleep apnoea, she encourages women to undergo further investigation. Identifying and treating an underlying sleep disorder can make a significant difference to symptoms they may have attributed entirely to menopause.

"When I suspect sleep apnoea and encourage these women to have a sleep test, it's a real win when we find something treatable! Once treated, some of those symptoms they've been blaming on menopause can improve significantly. We're not treating menopause itself, but we may be removing another major contributor to how awful they've been feeling." 

Katrina says this reinforces the importance of recognising fatigue as a potential workplace safety risk while understanding that its underlying causes can be complex. 

"We shouldn't just assume every exhausted woman in her 40s or 50s is tired because of her hormones! Menopause shouldn't be a barrier to women continuing successful careers in transport or any other industry. With more women entering traditionally male-dominated sectors, we have an opportunity to create workplaces that are better informed and more supportive. 

"Sometimes the most important first step is simply listening and understanding what someone is experiencing."