In the wake of Friday’s Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, Google’s chief people officer Fiona Cicconi sent a staff-wide email to employees informing them of Google’s response to the ruling. The email highlights, among other things, that Googlers can “request a move without justification” and that people responsible for the move process “are aware of the situation” when reviewing their requests. In an email last August reported by Bloomberg, Google told employees that of 10,000 requests to work remotely or relocate in recent months, 85 percent were approved.
The Supreme Court ruling doesn’t make abortion illegal across the US — instead, it leaves the decision to individual state governments. A number of states immediately restricted abortion rights, including Louisiana, Missouri and Kentucky. Other states, including California, where Google is headquartered, have vowed to protect abortion rights within their borders.
Here is the letter in full:
Hello everyone,
This morning, the US Supreme Court ruled in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturning Roe v. Wade.
This is a profound change for the country that deeply affects so many of us, especially women. Everyone will react in their own way, whether that’s wanting space and time to process, speak up, volunteer outside of work, not wanting to talk about it at all, or something completely different. Be aware of what your colleagues may be feeling and, as always, treat each other with respect.
Equity is extremely important to us as a company, and we share our concerns about the impact this ruling will have on people’s health, lives and careers. We will continue to work to make reproductive health information accessible across all of our products and continue our work to protect user privacy.
To support Googlers and their families, our US benefits plan and health insurance cover out-of-state medical procedures that are not available where an employee lives and works. Googlers can also request a move without justification, and those overseeing this process will be aware of the situation. If you need additional support, connect 1:1 with a People Consultant via: [link to internal tool redacted]†
Over the next few days, we’ll be hosting support sessions for Googlers in the US. These will be posted on Googler News.
Don’t hesitate to lean on your Google community in the coming days and take care of yourself and each other.
The Tech Warrior has reached out to Google to clarify whether anything has changed in its relocation policy, specifically as a result of the Supreme Court decision. We will update this story if there are additional details.
Update 9:12 PM ET: Added additional information about Google’s move policies.