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U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown
Manufacturing
Day
Manufacturing Day, Friday, October 2, is an opportunity to tout Ohio’s
strong manufacturing sector and commit ourselves to making it even
stronger. The men and women of this critical sector build the cars we
drive. They mold the medical equipment that keeps us healthy. They
create and make so many of the products we use each day.
In an era of stagnating wages and a shrinking middle class, investing
in manufacturing jobs is more important than ever, particularly in
Ohio. Since 2000, Ohio’s middle class has shrunk by more than five
percentage points — the second-largest drop in the country.
We know that a manufacturing job is often a ticket to the middle class.
The manufacturing industry can lift families up into our middle class
and help them stay there. It has the strongest multiplier effect of any
industry, with every $1.00 spent in manufacturing adding $1.48 to the
entire economy. But we can and must do more to boost our manufacturing
sector.
Last year, I wrote and helped pass into law the Revitalizing American
Manufacturing and Innovation (RAMI) Act. This law provides funding for
a National Network of Manufacturing Innovation made made up of advanced
manufacturing hubs, like America Makes in Youngstown. These hubs bring
together industry, universities and community colleges, federal
agencies, and all levels of government to leverage resources and spur
innovation.
Preserving our manufacturing jobs also requires strong trade
enforcement measures. In June, President Obama signed my Leveling the
Playing Field Act into law. Now, U.S. companies — especially those in
our steel industry — are better equipped to fight unfair trade
practices like dumping. This is a major win for manufacturers — but we
must also address currency manipulation, which hurts American workers.
That’s why I’ve urged negotiators to crack down on China’s currency
manipulation by strengthening U.S. trade laws.
To grow the manufacturing industry, we need to invest in a new
generation of manufacturers. This summer, five counties across Ohio —
including Jackson County — convened Manufacturing Camps to give
students a firsthand look at our manufacturing sector. These camps
brought together local manufactures like General Mills, Kenworth, and
Bellisio Foods, and local schools to expose Ohioans to manufacturing
jobs at a young age. We must build on the success of these camps to get
our kids interested in building and inventing.
Moving forward, we must also boost training for manufacturing jobs and
other high-skilled sectors to ensure that all Ohioans are prepared to
enter the workforce. In July 2014, President Obama signed into law the
Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), legislation that
contains provisions modeled after my Strengthening Employment Clusters
to Organize Regional Success (SECTORS) Act. This would help dislocated
workers train for high-tech jobs in their region. It will also promote
and require sector-based partnerships to ensure that workforce training
programs are developed with industry input and tailored to meet
companies’ workforce needs.
Investments in manufacturing are a down payment on our future, and will
help build and sustain an economy that works for all Ohioans. This
Manufacturing Day, let’s redouble our efforts to invest in our
manufacturing jobs and Ohio’s middle class.
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