Why Business Leaders Need to be Talking About Abortion Rights

Workforce shortages.

Disruptions in service.

Inflation rates, costs of labor, cost of products – all skyrocketing.

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If you thought that the effects of the great resignation have been challenging, just wait. ?I predict that the worst isn’t here yet.

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The reversal of Roe Vs. Wade has the potential to be far more detrimental to business and the economy for decades to come.

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I’m not going to get into questions of morality, politics, or values. While abortion is an issue that is deeply personal, ?in this article I’m writing to help leaders lead their businesses based strictly on the numbers. And when we look at the data, the restriction of abortion rights for women is simply a bad business move.

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Let’s start with the issue of talent shortages. A survey of over 1,800 men and women with college degrees who were working full time found that 64% would not apply for a job in a state with abortion bans similar to those currently in Texas. 50% said they would consider moving out of state if their lawmakers passed a similar ban. This is bad news for any businesses looking to attract or retain top talent in states that choose to limit abortion rights – especially those that so recently touted their commitments to gender and racial equity.

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Now imagine another 25% cut of the available labor pool.

25%.

That would represent the 1 of 4 women that have abortions during their lifetime.

1 in 4 that is likely now removed from the working population and forced to raise a child they were not prepared to raise.

While there is not an exact profile of the typical woman that has an abortion, most tend to be in their late 20s with some college, and importantly, 51% of these women were using a contraceptive method in the month they became pregnant – so no – birth control and condoms aren’t always enough to keep unwanted pregnancies from occurring.

So? So… we lose women from the workforce, and?

?And, there is zero speculation on the data that demonstrates the importance of having women in the labor force for a healthy economy. S&P Global goes as far as to say that the KEY to unlocking US GDP growth is increased female labor force participation. The effects of adding women to the workforce from this study demonstrate the addition of a staggering $5.87 trillion to the global stock market in 10 years, simply by focusing on efforts to increase the entry and retention of more women in the workforce.

So what’s the reverse effect? I think we can easily speculate.

Overturning Roe Vs. Wade won’t just make the hiring of women more challenging, retention rates will plummet as well.

How will these women be accommodated when they can no longer do the physically demanding work of their jobs?

How will employers respond when their female employees require more flexible work hours, higher pay, and increased psychological and financial support that will be necessary to care for themselves and their new, unplanned child?

?Leaders can no longer afford to ignore the economic cost of this move to reverse Roe Vs. Wade. The time is past due for business leaders to step up to support their workforce, their consumers, and their communities to prevent the hardships that will follow this overturn.

SOURCES

Bailey MJ, Hershbein B, Miller AR. The Opt-In Revolution? Contraception and the Gender Gap in Wages.?Am Econ J Appl Econ. 2012;4(3):225-254. doi:10.1257/app.4.3.225

Bovino, Beth Ann. Gold, Jason (2019). The Key to Unlocking U.S. GDP Growth: Women. S&P Global.

Jones RK, Reported contraceptive use in the month of becoming pregnant among U.S. abortion patients in 2000 and 2014,?Contraception, 2018, doi:10.1016/j.contraception.2017.12.018.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development “OECD Stat” (2019).

PerryUndem Research/Communication?Analysis of Voters' Opinions on Abortion Restrictions and Affirmative Policies.?2016?https://www.nirhealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Memo-NIRH-Poll_Final_3.pdf .