Tuesday, December 19, 2006
The Fall (and Rise) of Manufacturing
The idea that manufacturing has been declining has been in the public’s consciousness for a long time. In fact, the U.S. economy has been reconfiguring itself over the past several decades, with the number of manufacturing jobs steadily declining and the number of service-sector jobs steadily increasing.
However, just because manufacturing jobs are declining doesn't necessarily mean that manufacturing industries themselves are declining. A comparison of the change in the number of manufacturing jobs to the change in the value of the portion of Gross State Product (GSP) derived from manufacturing shows an interesting trend. They’re moving in opposite directions. The figures clearly show that between 2001 and 2005, sharp declines in manufacturing employment have been matched by robust growth in manufacturing GSP; an indication that capitalization and increases in other production efficiencies are replacing labor. In fact, growth in manufacturing GSP between 2001 and 2005 actually outpaced total GSP in both Ohio and the U.S (12 percent vs. 8 percent for Ohio, and 14 percent vs. 12 percent for the U.S.).
For more information on this and related issues, download the latest report from The Center for Community Solutions entitled, Poverty, Income, and Employment, A Social Indicators Update.
However, just because manufacturing jobs are declining doesn't necessarily mean that manufacturing industries themselves are declining. A comparison of the change in the number of manufacturing jobs to the change in the value of the portion of Gross State Product (GSP) derived from manufacturing shows an interesting trend. They’re moving in opposite directions. The figures clearly show that between 2001 and 2005, sharp declines in manufacturing employment have been matched by robust growth in manufacturing GSP; an indication that capitalization and increases in other production efficiencies are replacing labor. In fact, growth in manufacturing GSP between 2001 and 2005 actually outpaced total GSP in both Ohio and the U.S (12 percent vs. 8 percent for Ohio, and 14 percent vs. 12 percent for the U.S.).
For more information on this and related issues, download the latest report from The Center for Community Solutions entitled, Poverty, Income, and Employment, A Social Indicators Update.
