Al Carroll: Abortion ban could harm talent recruitment efforts

Two weeks ago, we witnessed a dramatic reversal of human rights in our country, and, in addition to our people, our economy will likely suffer greatly because of it.

Let’s talk about the facts:

◗ There are 2 million fewer women in the workforce than there were two years ago, according to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research. Many of the challenges from the pandemic, such as remote schooling, day care closures, caregiving challenges, etc., led to a mass exodus of women from the workplace.

◗ As of 2020, on average, white women still made 73 cents on the dollar compared to their male counterparts. Black and Hispanic women made 58 cents and 49 cents, respectively, according to the National Partnership for Women and Families.

◗ 85% of American voters think abortion should be legal in some or all circumstances, according to Vox.

◗ Retention and engagement suffer when employers don’t speak out publicly on issues workers believe are important.

In a time when competition for talent is at its highest, Indiana cannot afford to legislate itself toward irrelevance in the eyes of millions of working people across the country. A 2021 survey from the Tara Health Foundation found that 64% of professionals would not apply for a job in any state that passed an abortion ban.

As the pandemic has clearly shown, public health issues are workplace issues. Business, civic and community leaders are responsible for protecting the health and well-being of their employees. And there is an expectation for corporations to lead at this moment.

There are great people working hard to share the value of living and working in Indiana, yet we’re forced to compete against an overwhelming public perception of negativity that is, at its best, unwelcoming and, at its worst, uninhabitable to more than half the population. This is a moment for us—our corporations, civic organizations and community groups—to stand for, support and listen to our residents.

Corporate efforts to relocate or serve employees to circumnavigate new bans and restrictions are earnest efforts in places where influence has failed. That said, workers should not have to disclose the most difficult decision of their life to their employer to receive health care.

That isn’t a reality in Indiana now, and it never has to be. We can choose to stay out of the beltway issue of the month and continue to mind our own business.

Our message to legislators is to understand that additional bans mean forever locking out millions of potential Hoosiers from ever considering Indiana as a viable place to live and work. Additional bans will immediately influence the decision-making of thousands of college students who are on the fence about where to start their careers and will continue to ensure that another generation of young Hoosiers see “success” as finding a way out of Indiana.

We at Indy Hub are a community of doers who have chosen to engage in our community. We are Hoosiers by choice. We come from communities down the road and from the other side of the world.

On behalf of the tens of thousands of 20 and 30 somethings across our city and state, we ask our legislators to choose a different future for Indiana—one that affirms equality and enables our residents and physicians to make decisions with the full capacity of health care available to them. Our workforce and economy depend on us maintaining equality and ensuring Indiana isn’t a place where our daughters grow up with fewer rights than their mothers and grandmothers.•

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Carroll is president and CEO of IndyHub.