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Tech companies do not have thousands of $300k - million dollar machine tools filling their manf space. (and these machines require operators with 10+ yrs experience to run them)
Tech companies can operate 'virtual', as in from a flat/ apartment in India or a kitchen table in Jackson Hole, WY.
No need for living in SC for your tech job or company. (Tho plenty choose to be located in SC and NC)
That is what I have stated on here, and YT. They can all work remotely. There is no urgent need for Amazon to be in NYC, and get tax incentives for being in NYC.
South Carolina is right-to-work and under Obama, the NLRB filed a complaint against Boeing for trying to move union jobs there from Wash state. Unfortunately for Democrats, most manufacturing in this country, outside of high margin electronics and biologics manufacturing, is moving to right-to-work states, which is why Michigan became one a few years back. Trying to tell an employer where to locate within the US was Federal government overreach, and created an additional disincentive for any transportation manufacturer from opening up shop in a forced union state.
The State of South Carolina is home to dozens of Michelin Tire manufacturing plants. Firestone tires are not produced in the state. South Carolina is also home to the North American headquarters and the ONLY NA manufacturing plant for BMW. BMW started production in the state in 1994. The birth of this sole BMW HQ in the States spawned an entire supply chain located in South Carolina... from the transmissions used in BMW vehicles to the seat covers installed in the cars as they roll off the assembly line.
South Carolina is also home to the premier manufacturer of military aircraft -- Lockheed. It will be an easy shift for Lockheed employees to move to Boeing, if they want. The state gives tax breaks to companies because the companies bring jobs to technically talented South Carolinians. Clemson University runs the ONLY high-tech University auto research program in the country.
Manufacturing of all sorts began leaving north east, west and other high COL states before WWII for the south. Things accelerated post WWII especially as air conditioning became widespread making the place livable all year long.
Manufacturing went to the south for same reasons then as now; area is largely anti-union, low wage, and less local government interference in their affairs. Those same reasons are among those that cause international businesses to locate their plants in the south as well. Tons of industries from textiles on down once were all over the northeast from Maine right down through NJ onto PA; they all one by one decamped for the south. From there they went overseas to places such as Asia or India.
Face it, when it comes to manufacturing in USA it's fast becoming the south or nothing. Companies either go down south, or just keep things in Mexico or otherwise offshore.
For these and a few other reasons southern politicians both local and in Congress see raising federal minimum wage as an anathema. You force southern states to start paying a floor of say $12 or $14 and hour it would drive up wages up the ladder. Once that happens there goes any cost advantage manufactures have by locating plants in the south.
BMW pays factory workers in SC about $14-$15 per hour, which is pretty darn good money for that state. It also is far less then BMW would have to pay same workers in Germany.
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