workplace policy paying for employees to freeze eggs...
Moderator: talkhealth
- talkhealth
- Posts: 1782
- Joined: Thu Nov 04, 2010 3:29 pm
workplace policy paying for employees to freeze eggs...
** A recent story by NBC news revealed that Facebook in the US helps its female employees to pay for the cost of freezing their eggs. Apple is planning to introduce this policy in January.**
What does our expert panel think about this as a workplace policy, is it likely to bring additional stress?
What does our expert panel think about this as a workplace policy, is it likely to bring additional stress?
- Wendy Green
- Posts: 159
- Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 11:27 am
Re: workplace policy paying for employees to freeze eggs...
Hi,
I have mixed feelings about this policy. For young women who are career-minded and keen to get ahead, it might sound like a good idea to postpone motherhood until your career is well-established; but freezing your eggs isn't as straightforward as it sounds; the egg retrieval process involves hormone injections which can cause nausea, bloating and discomfort, and in rare cases lead to clots, organ failure, and hospitalisation. And a frozen egg won't necessarily lead to a successful pregnancy, so women who take up this offer may find themselves unable to have children at all.
Also the policy could be seen as saying: 'We don't want you to have a family, because it'll stop you focussing on your job.' This could make women frightened to plan to have children in their 20s, when they are at their most fertile, in case their employer thinks they're not serious about their job/career.
So women who freeze their eggs will still worry about their fertility and women who don't will worry about the effects on their careers. So I think the policy will increase the pressures women face both in the workplace and in their personal lives.
I have mixed feelings about this policy. For young women who are career-minded and keen to get ahead, it might sound like a good idea to postpone motherhood until your career is well-established; but freezing your eggs isn't as straightforward as it sounds; the egg retrieval process involves hormone injections which can cause nausea, bloating and discomfort, and in rare cases lead to clots, organ failure, and hospitalisation. And a frozen egg won't necessarily lead to a successful pregnancy, so women who take up this offer may find themselves unable to have children at all.
Also the policy could be seen as saying: 'We don't want you to have a family, because it'll stop you focussing on your job.' This could make women frightened to plan to have children in their 20s, when they are at their most fertile, in case their employer thinks they're not serious about their job/career.
So women who freeze their eggs will still worry about their fertility and women who don't will worry about the effects on their careers. So I think the policy will increase the pressures women face both in the workplace and in their personal lives.