Google Tells Employees They Can Apply to Relocate 'Without Justification' After Roe v. Wade Overturned

In a recent memo, Google’s chief people officer told employees that they could apply for work relocation “without justification” after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

CNBC reports that Google sent a companywide email on Friday about the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade stating that any employees in affected states can apply for relocation without explanation. Google’s Chief People Officer Fiona Cicconi stated in an email:

This is a profound change for the country that deeply effects so many of us, especially women. Googlers can also apply for relocation without justification, and those overseeing this process will be aware of the situation.

The note does not specify how many employees will be allowed to take advantage of this and makes no promises. The company is still also attempting to reassign employees who do not want to come back to their physical office following the firm’s return-to-office policy which began in April.

(Photo by Wolfgang Schwan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Pro abortion protesters gather outside the Supreme Court after Roe v. Wade overturned (Ashley Oliver/Breitbart News)

The company told CNBC that the relocation policy was already in effect before the Supreme court ruling. Google has over 30 locations across the United States. In the email, Cicconi also stated that the company would be offering “support sessions” to employees in coming weeks.

Other tech firms including Amazon and Facebook (now Meta) have offered to pay for employees to travel to receive abortions if they are in states where it is now banned following the Supreme Court’s ruling.

Read the full email from Cicconi to employees below:

Hi everyone,

This morning the US Supreme Court issued a ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that rolls back Roe v. Wade.

This is a profound change for the country that deeply effects so many of us, especially women. Everyone will respond in their own way, whether that’s wanting space and time to process, speaking up, volunteering outside of work, not wanting to discuss it at all , or something else entirely. Please be mindful of what your co-worker many be feeling and, as always, treat each other with respect.

Equity is extraordinarily important to us as a company, and we share concerns about the impact this ruling will have on people’s health, lives and careers. We will keep working to make information on reproductive healthcare accessible across our products and continue our work to protect user privacy.

To support Googlers and their dependents, our US benefits plan and health insurance covers out-of-state medical procedures that are not available where an employee live and works. Googlers can also apply for relocation without justification, and those overseeing this process will be aware of the situation. If you need additional support, please connect 1:1 with a People Consultant.

We will be arranging support sessions for Googlers in the US in the coming days. These will be posted to Googler News.

Please don’t hesitate to lean on your Google community in the days ahead and continue to take good care of yourselves and each other.