As Tennessee prepares to outlaw virtually all abortions this week, Americans remain divided over the moral and economic consequences of the state’s more restrictive abortion laws.
A Power Poll found business and community leaders in Chattanooga are nearly evenly divided about whether Tennessee’s abortion ban might hurt the state’s business growth and recruitment.
State Rep. Yusuf Hakeem, D-Chattanooga, said the abortion restrictions could spur a movement by abortion rights advocates to avoid Tennessee and may hurt business recruitment or tourism into the state.
“It does not present us as a state with an open and inclusive environment,” Hakeem said in a telephone interview. “I think these abortion restrictions could potentially have some impact on business and worker recruitment, and it may encourage some people not to visit our state.”
In a survey last week of Chattanooga area leaders, 50% of the 88 community leaders voiced similar views to Hakeem and said they thought Tennessee’s new abortion restrictions would have a negative economic effect on the Volunteer State. But another 45% of the respondents said there would be no effect, while 5% of the local leaders thought the new restrictions will help Tennessee’s economic development.
Tennessee economic recruiters say they have seen no sign of business concerns yet over the state’s new abortion restrictions and insist the pipeline for new business prospects remains busy across the Volunteer State.
Stuart McWhorter, the commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, said he has not heard any talk about abortion laws influencing business location decisions, noting that Tennessee’s central location and relatively low tax burden and regulations “make this a very business-friendly state.” Last year, Tennessee attracted a record-high $13 billion of new business announcements. McWhorter said he has seen no slowdown this year.
Stacy Dunn, president of Tennessee Right to Life, pushed Tennessee to outlaw abortions if the Supreme Court overturned its 1972 decision that legalized abortion across the United States.
“When the trigger law goes into effect next Thursday, Tennessee law will reflect our Tennessee values, and we will be able to protect our state’s youngest and most vulnerable citizens — unborn children,” she said in a statement Friday. “Governors of states with abortion-on-demand will find difficulty in using the violence of abortion to lure businesses away from Tennessee and its beauty, economic environment and pro-life values.”
Currently, abortion in Tennessee is subject to the “heartbeat bill,” which the General Assembly passed in 2020. That law went into effect June 28 after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and made it illegal in Tennessee to perform an abortion when a fetal heartbeat can be detected, which is typically around six weeks after the first day of a woman’s last menstrual cycle — otherwise known as six weeks gestational age.
On Thursday, Tennessee’s Human Life Protection Act, generally known as the Trigger Act, will go into effect to prohibit abortion after fertilization except in the cases where a provider deems it necessary to increase the probability of a live birth, to preserve the life or health of the child after live birth or to remove a dead fetus.
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gian Raimondo told The New York Times that some companies may seek to avoid states like Tennessee where abortion rights are limited and in the “war for talent” may appear to make the state less inviting to those who want more abortion rights.
“I’ve spoken to CEOs who are rethinking those states (with more restrictive abortion limits),” Raimondo, a Democrat and former Rhode Island governor, said in a recent interview with The Times. “I think the cumulative effect will, over time, develop to be quite significant.”
Some Democratic governors claim companies and workers may choose not to locate in states where abortion is more restricted.
“Workers care about this,” said Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois, who has tried to solicit companies away from states with more restrictive abortion laws.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, has vowed to veto any abortion ban approved by the Republican legislature because he says it “would have a negative effect on economic growth here in our state.”
A recent survey by the Pew Research Center found that 62% of women with college and postgraduate degrees disapproved of the Supreme Court’s decision, along with nearly 70% of people under 30.
“I’m not sure a CEO will choose a state because it’s pro- or anti-choice,” Gov. Ned Lamont of Connecticut said in an interview with MarketWatch. “But I do know they want to be in a place where they can recruit good workers. And people, especially young people, will gravitate to a place that will protect women.”
There have not yet been any major announcements about companies canceling expansions or relocating offices out of jurisdictions where abortion is now banned. But many of the country’s biggest businesses, including Walmart, AT&T, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase, have announced they would provide insurance coverage or other steps for their employees to provide travel to states with legalized abortion.
Walmart, the nation’s largest employer with more than 1.6 million workers, announced Friday that its health care plans will now cover abortion for employees “when there is a health risk to the mother, rape or incest, ectopic pregnancy, miscarriage or lack of fetal viability.” Previously, the company’s benefits plan had covered abortion only in cases “when the health of the mother would be in danger if the fetus were carried to term, the fetus could not survive the birthing process or death would be imminent after birth,” according to a copy of the policy viewed by The Associated Press but not confirmed by Walmart.
“It’s a step in the right direction, but it’s simply not far enough for a company that employs that many women,” said Bianca Agustin, director of the corporate accountability program for United for Respect, a group that advocates for Walmart workers. She said the organization will be incorporating “safe abortions” for employees in their list of demands pressing the company for better pay and benefits.
The careful expansion of Walmart’s abortion policy shows it is attempting to balance the differing opinions of its workers and customers.
“It’s much trickier than a lot of people initially think it is,” said Vanessa Burbano, a professor at Columbia University’s business school who researches how companies take social stances. “It’s not like all of their stakeholders are of the same opinion on any of these issues, which is what makes it so challenging. They’re trying to figure out how to thread that needle.”
The economic effect of Tennessee’s abortion ban
The Power Poll asked Chattanooga area political and business leaders, considering strictly the business implications of the state’s new abortion restrictions, what effect do you think there will be on Tennessee’s business and workforce recruitment efforts?
* 50% said there will be a negative economic impact.
* 45.5% said there will be no economic impact.
* 4.5% said there will be a positive economic impact.
– Source: Power Poll asked 261 area leaders and got responses from 88 last week.
The Associated Press and The New York Times contributed to this report.
Contact Dave Flessner at dflessner@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6340