Less Than 10% Of Companies Commented Publicly On Roe V. Wade Decision, Poll Finds – Forbes
Topline
Only 8% of companies made a public statement about the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, according to a new survey from The Conference Board, a nonprofit business membership and research group organization, which also found more than 30% of companies chose not to respond at all to the ruling.
An abortion rights rally takes place in front of the Supreme Court.
Key Facts
About 4 out of 10 companies said they chose to address the June 24 Supreme Court decision internally, according to the poll, which surveyed 274 U.S. companies—49% of which were public, 40% of which were private and 11% of which were nonprofit organizations—from June 30 to July 8.
Some 10% said they still haven’t decided whether to speak out on the ruling, while 2% said they were planning to make a public statement.
About 1% of corporations said they planned to engage in the legislative process on the issue, while 6% said they were going to donate to a women’s reproductive rights nonprofit organization after the ruling.
Of the companies that addressed the decision, 42% said they did so to communicate existing health care benefits to employees, while 45% said they added new benefits or offered travel reimbursement for those living in states where abortion is no longer legal.
More than two dozen major companies have said they will offer abortion-related benefits, according to Forbes, including Airbnb, Amazon, Apple, Bumble, Microsoft, Lyft, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Disney and Citigroup.
Surprising Fact
Some 80% of companies said they had never addressed women’s reproductive rights before the Roe v. Wade ruling, the survey found. About 6% said they addressed the issue after Politico leaked a draft opinion showing the Supreme Court was poised to overturn Roe v. Wade in May, while 7% said they did so even before the Politico story.
Tangent
Companies were more likely to have taken a stance on other social issues in recent years: Some 61% of companies said they had made a public statement on racial equality since the beginning of 2020, while 44% said they had spoken publicly about LGBTQ+-related issues, according to a separate survey as part of the larger Conference Board poll. About 4 out of 10 companies said they had made a public stance on vaccination and Covid-related issues as well as gender equality since 2022.
Key Background
In the weeks following the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion, several companies spoke out about their commitment to protecting reproductive health rights, including OKCupid and Levi Strauss. Many more followed suit after the Supreme Court made an official ruling. But dozens of others have also chosen to stay silent. Some corporations have faced backlash from lawmakers for taking political stances, including Disney, which drew the ire of Florida Republicans for opposing the state’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law, which imposes restrictions on classroom instruction involving “sexual orientation or gender identity.” Shortly after Disney spoke out against the law, Republicans enacted a law to dissolve the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which covers Walt Disney World and allows the theme park to govern itself. But recent polling suggests a majority of Americans want to see companies take a stance on abortion.
Further Reading
These Are The U.S. Companies Offering Abortion-Related Benefits (Forbes)
90% of U.S. companies silent on abortion after Dobbs, survey finds (Axios)