Amazon staff received a message telling them the company would pay up to $4,000 USD for employees to travel for a range of medical procedures.
A handful of companies, including Amazon and Levi Strauss & Co., have announced they will reimburse staff members if they need to travel for certain medical procedures.
Amazon’s announcement came at a perfect time, because hours later, a document was leaked that suggested the Supreme Court are planning to overturn Roe vs Wade.
If the Supreme Court does vote to overturn Roe vs Wade, it would give each US state the power to completely ban abortions, which is beyond messed up.
But companies around the United States are stepping up and promising to reimburse employees if they have to travel interstate for abortions and other medical procedures.
In Amazon’s case, the company will pay up to $4,000 USD if a staff member has to travel more than 100 miles from their home for a medical procedure that is not available at a closer location.
An Amazon spokesperson told the BBC that bariatric care, oncology, congenital anomalies from within 24 months of birth, mental health treatments, and in-patient substance abuse disorder services will also qualify for reimbursement.
It’s a fantastic gesture from the company, but without being too cynical, there could be other factors in play.
Amazon employees at the company’s Staten Island warehouse recently voted to join the worker’s union, which Bezos and his board weren’t too happy about.
It’s unclear whether or not the decision to join the union will affect the promise for travel reimbursements, but this could potentially be a ploy from the company to convince workers to move away from unionisation.
Bezos’ company have already spent more than $4 million USD on anti-union persuasion tactics, so we wouldn’t put it past them to invest a little bit more.
