Rebuilding Economy Requires New Policies, Focus on Manufacturing
The United States can lead the global economy of the future but it will require a combination of government policies that level the playing field and encourage manufacturing and innovation and corporations willing to make changes in the way they do business, three experts said today.
By moving our manufacturing overseas in search of short-term profits, we are losing our edge in innovation, Ron Bloom, assistant to President Obama for manufacturing policy, said today. A strong manufacturing base is essential to test and improve those new ideas, he said.
Chandra Brown, president of United Streetcar, the nation’s only streetcar manufacturer, agreed with Bloom, saying her company makes sure the engineers and designers work closely with the workers on the floor to get new ideas perfected quickly. But you can’t do that, she said, when the production floor is overseas and the designers are here.
IAM: America Needs Manufacturing Policy Now
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Unlike our competitors, the United States does not have a national manufacturing strategy. The “Make It in America” agenda, proposed by House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), is a step toward pursuing policies that will support and create manufacturing jobs, says Machinists (IAM) President Tom Buffenbarger. He urged support for the agenda and praised parts of it as critical to restoring the nation’s economic and national security.
Each month that passes without a comprehensive national plan to rebuild our manufacturing infrastructure is another month this nation suffers needlessly. The time for debate and lip service to the notion of large-scale job creation has past. We need big ideas, big enough to put hundreds of thousands of Americans back to work every month. Our economy will remain stuck in neutral until we do.
Trumka: Make It In America Agenda A Step in Right Direction
Rebuilding America’s manufacturing base is central to rebuilding our nation’s economy and it’s time for Congress to focus on jobs, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said today. Trumka commended Democratic House Whip Steny Hoyer for refocusing attention on job creation by introducing the bipartisan “Make it in America” agenda, a series of proposals that together would create a national manufacturing strategy.
The nation has seen too many jobs move overseas, Trumka said, including research and development capacity. The loss of the nation’s innovative, technical and industrial capacity not only undermines opportunities in America, it also threatens our national security, he added.
Restoring Manufacturing Key to Saving American Dream
A much larger and more robust manufacturing sector is the key to rebuilding the American economy and restoring faith in the American Dream, political, business and labor leaders said yesterday.
At the Conference on the Renaissance of American Manufacturing in Washington, D.C., several speakers agreed the free fall in U.S. manufacturing has cost millions of good jobs and put the country at a competitive disadvantage in the global economy. The future could be even dimmer if polices aren’t adopted to staunch the decline–because as the nation loses manufacturing, we also lose the research and development that lead to future innovations and new industries, they said.
Former U.S. Sen. Don Riegle (D-Mich.) noted that U.S. competitors—China, Germany and other European countries—utilize strategies that emphasize domestic development and production. The United States has no strategy, just a mistaken blind faith in free trade. In effect, the United States gives away jobs, production and technology to China and other countries, then buys back the products in the form of imports, he said.
Jobs: Job One for Congress
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Putting people to work making things in America will be Democrats’ top priority when Congress returns Sept. 15, two House leaders said today. During a telephone press conference, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said House Democrats will present a series of bill in this Congress and the next to help revive manufacturing and to implement President Obama’s infrastructure rebuilding plan.
Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.), vice chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, said the Democrats want to put to rest the idea pushed by congressional Republicans that the only way to create jobs is to give tax breaks to the richest Americans.
We want to celebrate Labor Day. We want to make this a day for workers again by making products in America again. Jobs is Job One for this Congress and we’re going to continue to do this despite what the naysayers may say.
The “Make It in America” initiative is a 17-bill package designed to help manufacturers recover from the Great Recession and the loss of 5.6 million manufacturing jobs in the past decade.
‘Apathy Is Our Biggest Adversary in This Election’
Kathy Cummings, communications director for the Washington State Labor Council (WSLC) sends us this video of House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) rallying union activists yesterday to ramp up their election action enthusiasm.
“You need to be fired up, and you need to feel it, and you need to convey it to your bothers and sisters. Apathy is our biggest adversary in this election….The issue in this campaign is are we going to put the car in R? When you put the car in R, you go backwards and we have a lot of work left to do.”
He told the crowd that the two congressional candidates sharing the podium, Suzan DelBene and Denny Heck, are “two extraordinary candidates.”
I want you excited about them because they will make a difference….The character of our country is at issue in this election….Our priorities are at issue in this election.
Take a few minutes and watch the full video. Learn more about Labor 2010 in Washington State here.
House Set to Act Fast Now that Senate Finally Passed Jobless Aid Extension
BREAKING: The U.S. House of Representatives this afternoon passed the unemployment insurance extension bill, by a 403-12 vote. The bill is on its way to President Barack Obama who could sign it as early as tomorrow.
After weeks of Republican stalling and obstruction that cost hundreds of thousands of jobless workers their unemployment insurance (UI)—the Senate last night approved extending UI to workers who have lost or will lose their benefits by the end of the year.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) promised to move quickly—as early as today—to ensure a House vote on the bill so President Obama can sign the legislation and get the checks moving again. Said Hoyer last night:
For too long, Senate Republicans blocked progress on extending unemployment insurance, which would provide immediate and tangible help to those who need it most, while also boosting our economy. Democrats remain focused on doing everything we can to assist Americans struggling to make ends meet and extending unemployment benefits is part of that effort. Now that this legislation has passed the Senate, I will bring it to the House Floor for a vote.
Welcome, New Members of Congress!
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| Sen. Kay Hagen, who defeated Elizabeth Dole in North Carolina, and Rep. Paul Tonko of New York are among the new members of Congress who joined members of the AFL-CIO union movement at a reception in their honor. |
Before getting down to the serious business of fair pay legislation, the Employee Free Choice Act, economic recovery and a whole host of other issues to change the nation’s stumbling direction after eight years of Bush rule, dozens of new members of Congress, and some veterans, got together with the labor movement last night.
At the AFL-CIO-sponsored reception at a Capitol Hill hotel, lawmakers, union leaders and legislative representatives mingled and talked about how a larger working family majority in both houses will impact upcoming legislative battles. In his welcoming remarks, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said:
We know what our priorities are and we know how committed each and everyone of you are, as is the president of the United States, to the working family agenda.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) told the crowd:
On behalf of the speaker [Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)] and myself, we will never forget, we will look forward to going forward shoulder to shoulder, paycheck to equitable paycheck. I will tell you this as well, when people say they want to be a member of a union and sign up, we’re going to make sure that they have the ability to be a member of a union.
