Walgreens is facing mass calls for a boycott on social media for at least the second time this year, after an employee in Wisconsin allegedly cited religious beliefs when he refused to sell condoms to a customer.

Twitter user Nate Pentz told his followers earlier this month that he and his partner Jess Pentz had stopped at a Walgreens in Hayward in northwest Wisconsin to get condoms. At checkout, a cashier told Jess Pentz he wouldn’t sell her the condoms because of his faith, Nate Pentz tweeted.

That led to the hashtag #BoycottWalgreens that was trending on Twitter.

“Instances like this are very rare and our policies are designed to ensure we meet the needs of our patients and customers while respecting the religious and moral beliefs of our team members,” Walgreens said in a statement. “We require the employee to refer the transaction to another employee or manager on duty who will complete the customer’s transaction.” The couple’s transaction was completed at the Wisconsin location, according to Walgreens.

The U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision last month, wiping out the constitutional right to an abortion. The decision to ban abortions now lies with states, roughly half of which will or likely will ban almost all the procedures. 

As such, it could fall to health care providers to protect certain reproductive rights, said Brayden King, professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. That puts Walgreens in a tense position at the center of one of the most heated and polarized debates in the country. 

The company must decide if it will protect employee rights or patients’ rights, King said. Companies are giving employees more leeway to express their culture and beliefs in the workplace, but often that concerns younger employees pushing to meld their personal and professional lives.

“We don’t think about, 'Well, how does that play out when you kind of give the same liberties to people who don’t necessarily have the same political views? Does that create the kind of workplace that’s going to be conducive for your business?' ” King said. “Walgreens is in a situation now where they’re dealing with that tension head-on. Do they take the side of the health care company and stand up for patients’ rights, or do they see themselves as a retail firm and they take the side of employee rights?”

However Walgreens proceeds, it likely won’t be the last time it finds itself in the middle of such a situation. 

The company operates roughly 9,000 stores nationwide, and political beliefs vary widely at many of those locations, as they do across the country. Confusion about the corporate policy could arise at various locations, King said. Furthermore, the falling of Roe v. Wade is top of mind for people on both sides of the political aisle, be they employees or customers.

“It’s a real problem when the issue you’re dealing with is one that is so politically controversial. Because now it is extremely salient in the mind of the checkout person, who is suddenly thinking, ‘Now I’m taking a side on this culture war,’ ” King said. “Whereas 12 months ago, they wouldn’t have thought twice about it.”

When #BoycottWalgreens was trending on Twitter yesterday, users said they planned to take their prescriptions and business elsewhere.

That hashtag trended in February, too, after Walgreens restarted political giving to the Republican lawmakers who objected to Joe Biden’s certification as president. Walgreens had paused political donations in early 2021 with a slew of other companies, following the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol.

Experts have said that boycotts are typically more effective at galvanizing public opinion than hitting a company’s bottom line. Nevertheless, such movements can threaten a company’s reputation, and should not be shrugged off.

Nate Pentz declined to comment.