For once, the New York Times gets it right
Posted by SCapozzola on May 9th, 2008
In a surprisingly frank editorial today, the New York Times tacitly admitted what ManufactureThis has been saying from day one: “The loss of manufacturing jobs, coupled with an achievement gap, is a recipe for perpetually worsening poverty.”
Because we haven’t seen the Times ring alarm bells about manufacturing job losses, it caught us by surprise today to see the stodgy “Old Grey Lady” upbraid the state of Connecticut for an ever widening income gap between rich and poor. As the editorial pointed out, “Over the past two decades, of all the 50 states, income inequality increased the most by far in Connecticut.”
And what did The Times note as the primary cause of this burgeoning wage disparity? The loss of good paying manufacturing jobs.
Specifically, the editorial said: Over the last 20 years, Connecticut has lost a third of its manufacturing jobs, replacing them with lower paying service-sector jobs. Virtually no additional jobs have been created.
This is precisely the problem that unfair trade from countries like China has wrought. It’s hard to see how a laid-off manufacturing worker, who downshifts from a good-paying factory job to hourly wages earned in a retail position, can afford the basic necessities to support a family. And so, we’re happy to see the New York Times recognize the inherent problem.
Sadly, the Times seems to have given up on U.S. manufacturing. With 3.5 million factory jobs lost since 2000, it’s possible they see the dismantling of industrial America as a fait accompli. But if the United States is to survive as a world leader—with First World standards and a self-sufficient military—it must remain a healthy manufacturing base. Thus, it’s unfortunate that the Times is so ready to throw in the towel vs. China and other countries that continue to swallow large chunk’s of once-vibrant American industry.
In addition to reforming the trade policies that have allowed competitors to undercut key sectors from steel to printed circuit boards, our best and brightest in Congress need to focus more on boosting R&D, with greater investment in high-tech manufacturing sectors, and enforcement of the trade laws on our books—namely, the ones adopted to bolster our factories and protect our workers from illegal dumping, subsidies, and currency manipulation.
Perhaps if we’d been following a more vigilant course in the pat 15 years, we wouldn’t see states like Connecticut, where minimum wage service-sector jobs are depended on to do what middle class manufacturing jobs once did.
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May 19th, 2008 at 10:27 pm
The World is Flat, and American Manufacturing is Falling off the Edge.
I am a Supply Chain consultant for small to mid-sized manufacturing companies. I used to be a Sr. Commodity Manager for a Fortune 100 company, and 6 years ago I left as I saw the writing on the wall for global outsourcing to low cost countries. I wanted to be a part of keeping manufacturing in American, not moving it out. I wanted to help the small to mid-sized companies improve their supply chain and production operations so they would be better able to compete against outsourcing by being more efficient. And they had room for lots of improvement; I saw it every day managing these suppliers.
Surprise, no one seemed to care! Many companies thought they were doing a good enough job even though their technology and processes resembled something from the 1970’s. God helps those who help themselves, but I guess we forgot that and now everyone wants the government to step in and protect their right to do business the same way they have been doing it for the past 30 years. Forget investing in continuous process improvement, forget improving and educating their labor resource skills, and forget capitalism allowing for survival of the fittest. That all costs money, time, and effort! And worst of all, that requires CHANGE! If the government protects our way of doing business without forcing drastic and immediate change, it will be the kiss of death for our manufacturing. Not only will WE not be able to afford our Made in the USA products, neither will the rest of the world.
If our companies are not eager and willing to change, they will not be here anymore, and they don’t deserve to be. We have the best workforce in the world, but we feel entitled and have given up the passion behind why we do business. If you are a manufacturing company, and you do not have a working ERP system, Lean Manufacturing processes, skilled supply chain and production operations employees, and either a partner or a sister division in Mexico, Asia, or the Eastern Block to give you a global footprint, you will die. These are hard words, but it is time hard times. There is no more time left. And I don’t see anyone talking about our own accountability and what we need to do to step up to the plate.
I know this is just one piece of the puzzle, but it is an important piece. The first presidential candidate that stops talking about “protecting” American manufacturing jobs and starts talking about using our tax dollars to subsidize the improvement of American companies through technology and education is getting my vote, whether they are a Democrat or a Republican.
In the meantime, in the words of Thomas Friedman (The World is Flat): Change or die. If you don’t know how, get help now. How you did business yesterday will not keep you in business tomorrow. We cannot (and should not) subsidize your inefficiencies. It is time to stand up and fight back, not by knocking down what others are doing better than us but by improving ourselves. Who’s up for the challenge?
The Supply Chain Gal