American companies offer abortion trips to employees

The US Supreme Court announced Friday that it has overturned the ruling in Roe v. Wade, which previously granted American women a constitutional right to abortion until the 24th week. Several states are now expected to ban or restrict a woman’s right to have an abortion, so she will have to go to other states to carry out the procedure.

Politicians did not take long for reactions – not even from corporations.

Already in May, When a draft court ruling was leaked, a number of companies such as Tesla, Microsoft, and Yelp announced that they intended to help cover the travel expenses of employees seeking “reproductive services” should the Roe v. Wade. Apple reiterated its message that the company supports employees who make their own decisions about reproductive health and that they will reimburse travel for health care services that are not nearby, Reuters reports.

Now that the court’s decision “poses a risk to women’s health, deprives them of their human rights, and threatens to undo the progress we’ve made toward gender equality in the workplace since Roe,” Yelps CEO Jeremy Stoppelman now says.

Disney tells its employees that the company is committed to providing adequate access to quality health care, including abortion. The company will cover the costs of employees who travel to other locations to carry out the procedure.

Facebook’s parent company Meta also states that it reimburses travel expenses for employees seeking an abortion outside their state. At the same time, the IT giant says it will evaluate how best to do this in light of “legal complexity”.

According to legal experts, there is a risk that companies offering this type of compensation will be sued by anti-abortion organizations and Republican-led states. According to lawyers, employers can be accused of violating state laws.

retail chain Lauren Hobart, CEO of Dick’s Sporting Goods, says via Linkedin that they will pay up to $4,000 in travel expenses for employees or their family members if they don’t have the opportunity to have an abortion nearby.

Online dating sites OkCupid and Bumble Inc as well as the largest US bank JPMorgan Chase, pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson, and streaming giant Netflix are also offering to reimburse travel expenses.

“OkCupid was horrified by the news of Roe’s ouster. This is an issue of gender equality,” marketing director Melissa Hobby told Reuters.

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