Made in America is back, leaving US factories scrambling to find workers

[Hydrogen]

New York CNN Business — US factories are humming, and manufacturers are scrambling to find workers as the pace of hiring hits levels not seen in decades.

Friday’s September jobs report showed US manufacturers added another 22,000 workers in September, increasing employment in the sector by nearly 500,000 over the course of the last 12 months.

The nearly 13 million workers employed in US factories make up the industry’s largest workforce since the Great Recession caused employment in the sector to plunge more than a dozen years ago. Since April, manufacturing employment has been growing at about a 4% annual rate, the fastest sustained pace of growth since 1984, when the sector had more than twice as large a share of US jobs.

And employers say they now are scrambling to fill even more jobs. The sector has had about 800,000 openings for most of the last year, despite the hiring binge, according to the Labor Department’s report.

With supply chains causing problems throughout the global economy, many US companies that depended on overseas suppliers have been shifting their focus to sources of parts and goods much closer to home.

“It was taking months for parts to not only get manufactured but come across and they decided they were willing to pay US manufacturing pricing to get that much faster,” said Hayden Jennison, production manager for Jennison Corporation, a Carnegie, Pennsylvania, company that makes everything from fire fighting equipment to construction machinery. He said there’s enough demand for his goods to staff an entire additional shift at the factory. But even though he’s paying $20 to $30 an hour he can’t find the workers he needs.

“Hiring has been a problem since 2020,” Jennison said. “Hiring experienced candidates that understand the industry, and understand what they’re doing, has been very difficult.”

Typically factory jobs and output take a hit during economic downturns, as they did during the Great Recession. But even with fears of a recession rising now, industry experts don’t expect factory jobs to default to their familiar boom-to-bust cycle this time.

“I think we’re in uncharted territory,” said Jay Timmons, CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers. “For every 100 jobs openings in the sector we only have 60 people who are looking. I think it’ll take quite a while to fill that pipeline.”

Timmons said that pay in the sector is up 5% over the course of the last year, and he expects it to keep rising as manufacturers scramble for skilled labor.

Experts say one of the biggest problems manufacturers face in attracting workers is their perception of the nature of the job.

“We often take a look at the images of manufacturing and we see the sparks flying and a welding environment and perhaps it’s a little bit dingy, dark. But by and large our manufacturing jobs today are high tech,” said Eric Esoda, CEO of a not-for-profit providing consulting and training services to small- and mid-size manufacturers in Northeast Pennsylvania.

One group employers are looking to for more help: women. Manufacturing remains a male-dominated industry, with only 30% of hourly factory jobs held by women, according to NAM. But that’s up from 27% only two years ago, and the Manufacturing Institute, an education and workforce development arm of NAM, has various programs aimed at raising the share of women workers on factory floors to 35% by 2030.

Today less than 10% of private sector jobs are in manufacturing, compared to more than 40% at the end of World War II. But it is still a key sector of the economy, one that pays much better than many others. The Labor Department reports the average weekly wage for manufacturing jobs is $1,250, or $65,000 annually — 11% more than private sector jobs overall, and 81% more than retail jobs.



https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/09/economy/manufacturing-jobs/index.html

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This sounds very optimistic and upbeat. Although, if ventures such as these are having a real positive effect on the US economy. I don't think its being felt.

While the manufacturing industry will definitely see a boost from high fossil fuel costs impairing global shipping. Followed by a shift to local sources of parts, goods and components. I think many manufacturing jobs in the united states rely heavily on subsidies. Which could make them prone to failure, should subsidy programs come to an end. The manufacturing sector in the USA is simply not very robust or independent. In the way that the country needs to fuel an explosion in manufacturing capability and job markets.

I think what the united states and many nations of the world really need. Is for youth and small businesses to step up. Big business has become too monolithic, unwieldy and inefficient. Small start ups could help to fill the many needs and wants being created by our looming recession.

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[n0ne]

The job market in United States is suffering. Every sector is experiencing difficulty starting from the transportation to the health industry. The fun part, even if every unemployed person of the country is given job, there'll be 50k+ jobs available. Salary and work time too problem with hiring. Even now there's fear of covid-19 spread through the job location. On different means labour market in America is in need. Maybe allowing foreign workers will end this problem, but it won't happen for now.

[Darker45]

It sounds so surreal hearing about companies and factories having a hard time looking for workers. From where I am, it's always the other way around. Workers abound, jobs are elusive.

I've indeed read that the unemployment rate in the US has been hitting low levels. And while I understand that there are a lot of odd jobs Americans wouldn't want to take, it seems easy to import foreign workers who are all too willing to even wipe old American asses for greenback's sake.

[lumbanrang]

But we know that most Americans today don't want to work in the industrial sector, the reasons being lower salaries and no career paths. It seems that the US government will re-import labor to meet the demand for workers.

[Findingnemo]

Companies are having hard time with recruiting the workers because of their low salary, the cost of living in US is high but these companies had manufacturing plants in country like China where the wage is comparatively low that is why there is void to be filled. And also in general US people are not really interested in factory job (I am not saying everyone just the common fact), they prefer white collar jobs so US companies may need recruitments from google and Facebook not from a company which actually makes physical product.

[Kakmakr]

What a great problem to have.... not having enough "skilled" people to fill all the jobs that are being advertised by these countries. In my country with the high unemployment, we have people with very good qualifications that are fighting to get a job. 

It is no wonder that 1st world countries are sourcing jobs from 3rd world countries like crazy at the moment. Also very cheap labor, compared to what they are paying their own citizens.

[hugeblack]

Timmons said that pay in the sector is up 5% over the course of the last year, and he expects it to keep rising as manufacturers scramble for skilled labor.

With hyperinflation, a 5% rise is nothing special.
I don't know, but the global recession is not centered on the United States (although it is an influential player), we have negative indicators all over the world and high prices are what makes suppliers go to safe countries even if the manufacturing cost is high.
Therefore, we cannot consider it a sufficient economic indicator to avoid confirming a recession.

[gantez]

I think what the united states and many nations of the world really need. Is for youth and small businesses to step up. Big business has become too monolithic, unwieldy and inefficient. Small start ups could help to fill the many needs and wants being created by our looming recession.

This is one solution to take people off from the road or street to get them to be productive and help themselves. Government need human development for them to grow in the capacity to handle business by themselves no matter how small is the business it will help the individual and that will push up the economy development and capital. You help one person and the other person get help from that circle it grows but government only invest in big companies for people to work in. If you are not able to get other people employed it means government has not build human development this is important.

[NeuroticFish]

I guess that the war has shown that each country has to rely much more on its own production.
Plus, the semiconductors crisis has opened the eyes of western countries' leadership that more such factories are needed, and they have to be local.

I expect it's not only industry workers US will be needing at great scale. US will need all kind of workers, skilled and unskilled.
Is it me or they're preparing softer legislation for accepting foreigners?

[el kaka22]

It is definitely a new day for USA workers but that doesn't change the fact that we are talking about them not being the most affordable worker groups that you could hire. Meaning the factories that benefit from the low transfer times end up hiring US workers and make them work in US factories because right now oil is expensive and transporting goods from China is not profitable.

The cheaper Chinese workers could make the products cheaper, but adding the cost of transportation and also the loss of revenue during the period where they do not have any money and that means we are talking about loss of time and not selling products while waiting for it. Sure if you are buying 500k+ shoes like Nike does, it's still reasonable, but for smaller jobs, it's logical to stay in the USA and keep going.

[The Sceptical Chymist]

It sounds so surreal hearing about companies and factories having a hard time looking for workers. From where I am, it's always the other way around. Workers abound, jobs are elusive.

In the US, it's probably true that manufacturers are having a hard time finding workers--and the reason might be because of what the article says right in the beginning, that so many companies have been outsourcing for so many years that schools don't even train kids for jobs in manufacturing anymore.  I'm not 100% that's the case, but I don't think people in their 20s-30s in the US are going to be looking to work in machine shops or on assembly lines, even if they have the skills to do so.

Plus I think if there's a shift away from the US getting most of its manufacturing done in China and wherever else, it's going to be a temporary thing.  After all, there's a reason all of those jobs went overseas in the first place, i.e., it's so much cheaper than hiring American workers.  We'll see.

[Gyfts]

It shouldn't come as surprising that factory workers aren't going back to work after having spent 2020 collecting government stimulus/unemployment assistance for over a year to not even show up to work. Turns out shutting down the global economy and artificially stimulating the economy by printing money disincentivizes people to work.

I think many manufacturing jobs in the united states rely heavily on subsidies. Which could make them prone to failure, should subsidy programs come to an end. The manufacturing sector in the USA is simply not very robust or independent. In the way that the country needs to fuel an explosion in manufacturing capability and job markets.

I think what the united states and many nations of the world really need. Is for youth and small businesses to step up. Big business has become too monolithic, unwieldy and inefficient. Small start ups could help to fill the many needs and wants being created by our looming recession.

Even if the manufacturing industry is propped up by subsidies, it doesn't make much sense for there to be so many openings if it's true that the average wage for these manufacturing positions are 65k USD/yr.

[stompix]

What a great problem to have.... not having enough "skilled" people to fill all the jobs that are being advertised by these countries.

The same problem here in Europe:

In the EU, the employment rate of people aged 20-64 stood at 74.8% in the second quarter of 2022, an increase of 0.3 percentage points (pp) compared with the first quarter of 2022.

we have hit record employment levels since the founding of the EU, roughly 8% up in a decade and with enormous room for more!
And to make things even more interesting this whole statistics don't take into account foreign citizens that don't have a fiscal residency here but still work in European companies. The labor market in Europe has managed to absorb 400 000 Ukrainian refugees who have found a job, that's how desperate we were here for hiring, you're human and you know how to communicate you can get a job for sure, there are hundreds of companies who are resorting to paid training months, just sign a 24 months contract that you won't quit and they are ready to hire you and pay you even in the first 3 months you're learning how to do your job.

So much for the death and destruction of the US and EU economies.

This sounds very optimistic and upbeat.

Yeah, quite a different thing around here where there is doom and gloom and only talk about crashes, recessions, new world orders, bankruptcy, and other collapses. God forbid there should be a discussion about good things happening, no way, there is no such thing!!!

In the US, it's probably true that manufacturers are having a hard time finding workers--and the reason might be because of what the article says right in the beginning, that so many companies have been outsourcing for so many years that schools don't even train kids for jobs in manufacturing anymore.  I'm not 100% that's the case, but I don't think people in their 20s-30s in the US are going to be looking to work in machine shops or on assembly lines, even if they have the skills to do so.

Manufacturing in most big companies has stopped for a decade being about physical labor, and assembly lines made out of hundreds of workers gluing stuff together are becoming and have become in most cases a thing of the past. I can give you an example like the tire factory my cousin works for, they are hiring about 1000 people and 80% of the jobs are hybrid, most of it you can do from home, R&D,  engineers for safety mechanisms, architecture, developers, testers, etc I think the ratio of brain vs muscle needed is 20:1 at least.

“We often take a look at the images of manufacturing and we see the sparks flying and a welding environment and perhaps it’s a little bit dingy, dark. But by and large our manufacturing jobs today are high tech,” said Eric Esoda, CEO of a not-for-profit providing consulting and training services to small- and mid-size manufacturers in Northeast Pennsylvania.

[Darker45]

It sounds so surreal hearing about companies and factories having a hard time looking for workers. From where I am, it's always the other way around. Workers abound, jobs are elusive.

In the US, it's probably true that manufacturers are having a hard time finding workers--and the reason might be because of what the article says right in the beginning, that so many companies have been outsourcing for so many years that schools don't even train kids for jobs in manufacturing anymore.  I'm not 100% that's the case, but I don't think people in their 20s-30s in the US are going to be looking to work in machine shops or on assembly lines, even if they have the skills to do so.

Exactly. As I've said, there are probably lots of odd jobs in the US that even unemployed Americans wouldn't take. But I'm more than sure that those odd or even dirty jobs are coveted from the perspective of many foreign labor force. So I think companies that are left with no choice would always have that option. They'd probably rather hire foreign workers that need training than sacrifice their operation or productivity.

Plus I think if there's a shift away from the US getting most of its manufacturing done in China and wherever else, it's going to be a temporary thing.  After all, there's a reason all of those jobs went overseas in the first place, i.e., it's so much cheaper than hiring American workers.  We'll see.

We'll see. Of course, cheap labor force is definitely a significant factor but that's not the only consideration. There are probably a number of companies that would rather pay bigger salaries for the sake of standard or overall business environment or whatever. But those large manufacturing companies that are having a hard time filling vacancies for years would probably be enticed to move overseas where labor is overflowing and cheap, provided the environment is conducive enough to do business.

[Leviathan.007]

That's not good to see even in a developed country like the USA that has problems with hiring people because the inflation rates rising up and people are expecting to receive more salary compared to the salary they got before and the factories and companies usually cannot pay the amount workers to expect, Also regarding the factories, I guess most of the American people are not really interested in working for a factory, they usually prefer working for a company than working there, maybe that's another reason so see the unemployment is rising over time.

[DrBeer]

The United States went the very right way during the protracted global crisis that began with the Covid-19 pandemic.
To correct the situation, the country must start WORKING. Companies, factories, offices, cafes, gas stations. Today, due to stagnation, the turnover of money has sharply decreased, which leads to the degradation of the economy. The low activity of the flow of money in all areas of the economy is like "low financial pressure in the body." Here, the problems will not only be in weakness, but this can also lead to the "loss of consciousness" of the economy or its death. Therefore, the transfer of production from China, the emphasis on local jobs is a very right move!

[Argoo]

I guess that the war has shown that each country has to rely much more on its own production.
Plus, the semiconductors crisis has opened the eyes of western countries' leadership that more such factories are needed, and they have to be local.

I expect it's not only industry workers US will be needing at great scale. US will need all kind of workers, skilled and unskilled.
Is it me or they're preparing softer legislation for accepting foreigners?

Russia's war against Ukraine and US and European assistance to Ukraine in weapons to defend against Russian aggression greatly spurred the work of the defense complex of both the US and all NATO members. So, if earlier the United States produced about 14 thousand shells per month, then by 2025 they plan to increase their production to 90 thousand.

In addition, before the attack on Ukraine, Russia was the largest supplier of weapons to the world market. On the battlefield in Ukraine, Russian military equipment showed great vulnerability to high-precision equipment of NATO countries, and a big problem arose in Russia. They stopped buying its military equipment, and at the same time, there was simply a rush demand for weapons from NATO countries. Therefore, their defense plants will be working around the clock in the next few years to meet increased orders. As a result, additional jobs will be created.

[franky1]

at this moment.
america is seeing "opportunity abuse"

(UK is like the US, we dont get our gas from russia so while EU HAS to pay more, UK gets to sell high buy low from its own operations/sources)

america is not getting supplies from russia so is not hinged on the whole EU war stuff
so while EU mainland prices are going up for real reasons, causing EU market rises.. america/UK get to inflate their goods prices for lots of profit
because they are not getting gas/oil from the euro/russia. so not paying high prices. instead they get to have their cheap oil (self sustained) and sell the end product out to others for a high price and keep the profit

this means with a 'retail sell high, wholesale buy low' there is more profit, to then employ more and produce more locally

however
this retail sale high, wholesale low opportunity.. is temporary
meaning the "buy local" "buy US" will end and things will go back to producing cheap in 3rd world countries again when things settle down
thus many lay-offs and cutting staff later on


 

[adaseb]

Job market is suffering everywhere because many boomers decided to retire all at once after Covid. They are the most at risk and just decided to throw in the towel. And they are retiring in huge numbers and not enough people to take over. It’s also hard to match the experience level of a boomer which just retired with someone new. Hence you are getting productivity down also.