San Francisco, Oct 15 (IANS/EFE): Apple and Facebook have added an extra incentive to women considering working at the tech giants by giving female employees the option of freezing their ovaries to attract and retain more women in their workforces in Silicon Valley.

Facebook Tuesday told the NBC News channel that it had been offering this option to its employees since January, while Apple said that it would begin doing so from the beginning of next year.

The procedure allows women to freeze their ovaries during their most fertile years which often coincide with the most productive period in their professional lives.

The quality of ovaries diminish with age, which puts many women in a difficult position as they have to decide whether to delay having a child or not once they are past the age of 30.

The cost of the procedure could amount to $20,000, since two ovarian stimulation cycles are normally required for collecting samples, and the US health insurance policies do not usually cover the costs of the procedure.