Coca-Cola shareholders shot down a proposal to issue a survey in pro-life states about how the abortion laws affect the company.
The proposal came from the left-wing nonprofit As You Saw, titled “Coca-Cola Co: Report Risks to Company From State Restrictions on Reproductive Rights and Planned Corporate Response.”
As You Saw claimed:
Coke may find it more difficult to recruit employees to Georgia or to the other states which have outlawed abortion.[6] According to a 2022 survey, more than 50 percent of women under 40, regardless of political affiliation, would prefer to work for a company that supports abortion access.[7] This may harm Coke’s ability to meet diversity and inclusion goals, with negative consequences to performance, brand, and reputation.Surveys have consistently shown that a majority of Americans wanted to keep the Roe v. Wade framework intact.[8] In a 2021 survey of U.S. consumers, 64 percent said employers should ensure that employees have access to reproductive health care and 42 percent would be more likely to buy from a brand that publicly supports reproductive health care.[9]
The Board of Directors said in Coca-Cola’s proxy statement that investors should vote against it:
The Board believes that the Company’s robust risk management processes that are already in place are appropriate and sufficient to address potential risks raised in this shareowner proposal, without conducting additional analysis or reporting. In addition, the Company already has in place comprehensive health benefits that provide for our employees’ needs, as opposed to what might be otherwise suggested in this proposal.Shareowners have elected the Board to oversee risk. Inherent in the Board’s responsibilities is an understanding of, and oversight over, the various risks facing the Company. Effective risk oversight is one of the key priorities for the Board, which has implemented a risk governance framework to minimize exposure to unforeseen events, as well as identified risks and emerging risks that may not be impacting our business now but have the potential to do so in the future.
The Board of Directors also noted the company has “comprehensive health benefits” that negate the need for the survey:
The Company takes pride in the comprehensive Total Rewards package offered to our employees. This includes benefits essential to the well-being of women, children and families, such as reproductive and maternal health services, and family planning.The Company has a medical travel reimbursement policy that covers a range of travel expenses. At a minimum, this travel reimbursement policy would relate to a broad range of treatments and procedures when they are (i) medically necessary, and (ii) not available in-state. The Company does not determine which treatments and procedures are medically necessary; rather these are the decisions of our employees’ healthcare providers and the insurance companies administering the plan. The employee would utilize the regular claims procedures to seek coverage under our medical travel reimbursement policy
Almost 87% of the investors voted against the proposal:
70,796,884 did not vote. 505,076,089 were broker non-votes.
It wasn’t even close! The investors also rejected a proposal to audit how the company impacts nonwhite stakeholders.
Coca-Cola is based in Georgia, which has a six-week abortion ban. The Georgia Supreme Court is currently reviewing the law.
Thank you, Coca-Cola investors. However, I’m addicted to Diet Coke. It’s probably the only thing I won’t ever boycott. I’ve already boycotted Benefit cosmetics, elf cosmetics, and Revlon over their abortion support.
Any female who has been pregnant knows you can hear a heartbeat at six weeks. It’s the most glorious sound anyone will ever hear.
By the way, do you guys remember this commercial? I had a poster of the model (Lucky Vanous) in my 9th grade locker.
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