The Walt Disney Co., publishing giant Conde Nast and investment firm JPMorgan Chase were among major U.S. companies that pledged on Friday to cover travel expenses for employees seeking out-of-state abortions following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling. reversal of Roe v. Wade.
The ruling removed the constitutional protection of abortion, leaving the matter to the discretion of the individual states, 13 of which were prepared to ban the procedure immediately.
Florida, where Walt Disney World is located, currently bans abortions after 15 weeks. Disney employee benefits will cover the costs of those who need to travel to receive medical care, including abortions, a company spokesman said Friday. The company, which recently got into a dispute with state lawmakers over the controversial “Don’t Say You’re Gay” bill, had previously declined to comment on a possible coup.
Other major media companies — Sony, Paramount, Comcast, Warner Bros., Discovery and Netflix — have also said they will reimburse out-of-state transportation costs for abortions.
airbnb, Dick’s sporting goods, Patagonia made similar promises. Gap, in a statementnoted that its employee benefits cover abortions and other family planning services, but did not specify travel expenses.
Top executives at other companies — outgoing Meta COO Sheryl Sandberg, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian and Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman — denounced the decision as a step backwards on women’s rights.
“Business leaders should support the health and safety of their employees by speaking out against the wave of abortion bans that this decision will cause and call on Congress to codify Rowe into law,” Stoppelman wrote in his speech. statement.
Here it is. I’m so sorry to see this. Dems, here’s your midterm mandate. https://t.co/BWhLPRQqtC
Condé Nast CEO Roger Lynch writes to staff in an email: “The most effective way for us to respond to what’s happening right now is through our brands and the distinctive editorial lenses they use to highlight today’s news and the impact they have. will have on society.” pic.twitter.com/0JxkuznpCj
Whitney Wolfe Hurd, CEO of dating app Bumble, said her company will continue to support reproductive rights through donations to the ACLU and Planned Parenthood. OkCupid encouraged people to contact their elected representatives at post on instagram.
Apple, Amazon, Tesla, Levi Strauss & Co., Lyft, Starbucks and Microsoft have previously said they will also cover travel expenses for employees seeking medical care out of state.
In September, Uber said it would cover the legal costs of drivers sued for taking people to abortion clinics. That same month, Salesforce offered to help Texas employees relocate after that state, along with Mississippi, passed “heartbeat bills” effectively banning early abortions.