Ova Only

Several tech companies, including Facebook and Apple have instituted a policy of paying for the cost of female workers to freeze their eggs. The idea says the LA Times article—itself quoting a post on NBC News—is to allow female workers to concentrate on their career without fear of having motherhood interfere. At both these companies, men outnumber women 2 to 1, and it is hoped granting women this perk will keep more women on board. Using a rather newly perfected technology as a retaining or recruiting tool, the procedure costs from $5000 to $15,000, should be appropriate, after all these are technology companies. Yet, critics, and I am one of them, point out the ways this policy looks to be unfair to women. Had the policy included men being able to freeze their sperms, I would say what a clever use of technology, but singling out women is bothersome. I’d go as far as saying it’s demeaning because it seems more a value judgment than an option. It says to women you can’t be both parent and career person—while men according to this policy can. It has, however, yielded something positive, the fact that all these issues are now being discussed.