Some women in their early 20s might be paying more attention to having a successful career than being a mother. Are you one of them who want to pursue a better career than building a family? If yes, applying for a job at a company that provides egg-freezing benefit could be a great thing for your future.
Egg-freezing is a method of preserving a woman’s fertility so she can have children at a later date. UCLA Health explained that egg-freezing is a big decision for those who undergo several choices in life, including those who prioritise in building a career. The freezing egg method is also beneficial for women who have cancer requiring chemotherapy which might affect fertility, a surgery that might cause damage to the ovaries, risk of premature ovarian failure, ovarian disease, genetic mutations, and to delay childbearing. The cost of this option, however, is rather costly depending on the methods taken for the surgery and fertility.
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Does giving female employees this benefit mean discrimination and/or preventing women from having their right as a mother?
Companies providing this costly benefit is usually tech companies, law, consulting or finance sectors such as Uber, Deloitte, LinkedIn, Facebook, or Apple. Avery Hartmans said that Facebook, one of 100 Fortune companies, is offering the egg-freezing benefit to help its female employees be more productive at work. In fact, Facebook has taken several ways to avoid distractions for its employees and provide better work experience for them such as building an apartment complex for employees within biking distance to encourage minimum time away from work, helping staff save time and travel cost.
So, do you think giant companies like Facebook give egg-freezing benefit in order to eliminate distraction? Probably not. Giving the judgment of egg-freezing to eliminate distraction seems unfair for those companies. In fact, there are many individuals who would consider taking the benefit as it helps them focus on their career. After all, it is an expensive benefit which can help both parties, employer, and employees, within the workforce. First, female employees who desire a successful career might take the offer while a company will benefit from having a loyal and productive female leader. Second, the employer should be mindful when offering the benefit as not all women are looking forward to delaying their pregnancy.
David Allen told SHRM that it makes more sense when the goal of offering the benefit is to give women and spouses choice when managing their family planning, not just encouraging women to put off having children.
Egg-freezing benefit is not a playful benefit as it can cost a fortune. That is why only a few giant companies can offer this perk. According to NPR, the average cost of freezing a woman’s eggs is about US$10,000 to harvest eggs from the ovaries, after a woman has taken medications for several weeks to stimulate egg production. Then, the eggs need to be frozen and stored, at a cost of about US$500 a year. Each time eggs are thawed, fertilized and transferred to the uterus with IVF, it can cost about US$5,000. The total amount that a company can spend is approximately US$32,000 or more until the employees retire or ready to take back the eggs.
Millennials who love pursuing higher knowledge and better career will perhaps consider taking the benefit. However, some older generations might prefer pursuing both a career and building a family. That said, having a discussion with employees is a must. If your company provide the egg-freezing as an absolute benefit to take for female employees, letting them know at the beginning of recruitment is advisable.
Another consideration for an employer when developing egg-freezing benefit is to cooperate with the fertility centre in order to ease both employer and employees in having the program. Here are three best choices to cooperate: Virtus Fertility Centre in Singapore, South Asia Fertility Centre in India, or Alpha Fertility Centre in Malaysia.
Read also: Should You Make “Menstrual Leave” Available?
