Meta, formerly known as Facebook has banned using the word ‘abortion’ at its internal employee messaging platform called Workplace.
Meta implemented the abortion speech prohibitions in 2019, the Verge reported, and during an all-staff meeting on Thursday, an executive told employees that there is “an increased risk” of the company being seen as a “hostile work environment” because of internal discourse on abortion.
Workplace is a global messaging platform for company employees. According to a report in The Verge citing a Meta executive, Meta told her employees last Thursday that the term “abortion” shouldn’t be used in the workplace. “Facebook employees can’t do all of these things in the workplace. Whether he’s right or wrong. Employees will not be able to discuss anything on Facebook, be it abortion rights or any political, religious or humanitarian issue.
Meta calls abortion a “unique theme” that can “make people feel like they’re being targeted”.
“It’s the most contentious issue,” Janelle Gayle, Meter’s vice president of human resources, told Facebook at a meeting. No one will discuss that word.” However, the company’s employees are not at all happy with such a decision by Meta or Facebook. They claim that this policy is inconsistent with other organization policies such as Black Lives Matter, Immigration, and Trans Rights.
