Manufacturing jobs

December 15, 2007

This is regarding "State's wage gap growing; Standard of living at risk, study says" (Business, Dec. 5), which talked about the loss of manufacturing jobs to underscore the alarming jobs forecast outlined in The State of Working Illinois report released recently.

The article, however, ignored the bigger picture about the current state of manufacturing.

While it is true that Illinois has lost thousands of manufacturing jobs to overseas competitors, in many cases the jobs lost have been low-skilled and low-paying. The U.S. no longer has an advantage over China or Mexico for that type of production work. But we do have a competitive advantage in the production of complex products. Many of the companies that are prospering in Illinois are doing just that—making high value-added products and implementing high-road business practices, which is why manufacturing jobs continue to be among the highest-paying in the state.

The Tribune article pointed out that the manufacturing sector still accounts for a higher percentage of the state's jobs, 13.2 percent compared to 12.2 percent for retail.

In the Chicago area, we have more than 11,000 companies employing 400,000 workers. The average manufacturing wage, including benefits, is more than $64,000 a year, and each manufacturing job generates three other jobs in the economy.

In contrast, The State of Working Illinois report by Northern Illinois University's Office for Social Policy Research states that more than half the new jobs projected for Illinois over the next 10 years will be in occupations paying less than the state's annual median wage of $40,217. For every new job paying twice that amount, three will be created paying less than half, an income below the poverty level.

We need not accept reports of declining wages as the undisputed truth. There is time to reverse these negative trends, and the production of complex products could be the engine to fuel our economy. In these types of "factories," everyone benefits: the owners, the workers, as well as the regional economy. In Illinois, we must support policies, form partnerships and develop a world-class education system that prepares our youth for careers in high-skilled manufacturing. The investment in sustainable development we make today will drive the economy tomorrow.

Dan Swinney
Executive director
Chicago Manufacturing
Renaissance Council