Home » Employment News » Roe vs Wade: Adidas, Nike and Disney join the wave of companies who will help employees cover abortion travel costs

Roe vs Wade: Adidas, Nike and Disney join the wave of companies who will help employees cover abortion travel costs

By Nagasunder in Employment News, posted June 28, 2022

JPMorgan Chase and two sports clothing giants have joined a number of firms in promising to pay for workers who need to fly out of state for abortions.

The United States Supreme Court effectively overturned Roe v. Wade on Friday, saying that the constitutional right to abortion, which has been sustained for over a half-century, no longer existed.

Without federal protection, states are now responsible for enacting their own abortion laws.

Some states have already enacted legislation prohibiting practically all abortions.

Beginning in July, JP Morgan will cover the cost of travel to a state where abortion is permitted for workers who live in states where it is illegal.

Nike and Adidas have also published statements stating that they will help employees in obtaining abortions if the practice is prohibited where they reside.

So for example, while abortion is still legal in Oregon, the two corporations have employees in states where abortion is now illegal or highly restricted.

Nike located in Beaverton , claims abortion is included in their family planning coverage.

The sports gear company said it would reimburse employees' travel and accommodation charges if they can't get services locally.

Portland is home to the North American headquarters of Adidas.

A statement from the company said: “Our comprehensive medical plans will continue to cover reproductive resources like contraception and abortion support, pregnancy, fertility, and other family planning and building services,”

Adidas said in a statement: “Where availability of abortion services may not be accessible close to home, our plan now covers travel and lodging expenses, up to $10,000 per occurrence, for all U.S. employees enrolled in the plan.”

A statement from Oregon’s largest corporate employer, Intel, also signaled ongoing healthcare coverage for employees seeking abortions, but its statement was more cautious and vaguer.

“Our U.S. healthcare options cover a wide range of medical treatments, including abortion where permitted, as part of our overall family planning benefits,” the statement said. “Intel will continue to provide resources for those who need to travel for safe, timely healthcare.”

After the initial statement from JP Morgan, several companies issued statements and internal memos to employees. They include Disney, Paramount, Netflix, Condé Nast, Meta, Warner Bros, Comcast, Sony, Intuit, BuzzFeed, Duolingo, Dick's Sporting Goods, Patagonia, and Box and Johnson & Johnson.

These firms follow a prior wave of companies that made similar declarations after a Supreme Court ruling indicating this conclusion was leaked in early May. Amazon. Zillow, Levi Strauss, Apple, Lyft, Uber, Airbnb, DoorDash, Yelp, Citigroup, Tesla, Microsoft, Starbucks, Mastercard, Reddit, and PayPal are among those firms

Looking for a new job? Find the WhatJobs Career Advice Center here

A statement from Levi's said: "Access to reproductive health care, including abortion, has been a critical factor to the workplace gains and contributions women have made over the past 50 years,"

According to an internal email from CEO Roger Lynch to workers of the publisher of Vogue, New Yorker, and Vanity Fair, Condé Nast would pay for travel and hotel fees if employees need to go out of state for an abortion. "It is a crushing blow to reproductive rights that have been protected for nearly half a century," Lynch said in the memo obtained by NPR.

Condé Nast said it has improved its U.S. health insurance to ensure that employees and their families have access to reproductive care regardless of where they live. Lynch went further in his email to urge his employees to use their writing to respond in this moment.

Source: OPB

Follow us on YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook