Time and again we hear it — from a broad array of individuals, who are thought leaders, elected leaders, think-tank leaders, pundits and more. “North Carolina is no longer a manufacturing state.” Or, “we don’t have a manufacturing economy anymore.” It’s disconcerting and misleading at best and, at worst, could drive decision-making and planning for the future in the wrong direction.

 

You see, North Carolina is still one of the top 10 manufacturing states in the country. Manufacturing is still a huge part of our state’s economy, and that’s a great thing because today’s manufacturing jobs are very good jobs. They pay more with better benefits than most non-manufacturing jobs, and keeping and growing them here will raise our standard of living.

 

The annual average earnings per job in North Carolina manufacturing — at $59,964 — were 46 percent higher than the statewide average in 2006. Without manufacturing, the average annual wage in North Carolina would be nearly 6 percent lower than it is today with manufacturing. These are just two examples from a report by Dr. Graham Toft, president of GrowthEconomics, which quantifies not only the impact of manufacturing on North Carolina’s economy, but also its growth potential for the future. The North Carolina Chamber commissioned the study and resulting report to raise awareness about modern manufacturing’s value and carefully document challenges, opportunities and action plans for positioning our state’s manufacturing sector for growth in the 21st century. (You can find the report online at www.ncchamber.net and read about it on page 61 of this magazine.)

 

Perhaps at no other time has it been more important to recognize manufacturing’s value to our economy and growth potential for the future. With North Carolina facing record unemployment, a multi-billion-dollar budget deficit, and elected leaders considering the most comprehensive overhaul of our state’s tax system in 70 years, we should all be talking about how to preserve the manufacturing jobs we have and get into a position to grow and attract more of them. Central to preserving and growing good jobs in today’s open-market economy is recognition that tax policy is de facto industrial policy.

 

Along with smart tax policy, North Carolina’s manufacturing future requires smart workers, who are constantly gaining new knowledge, learning new skills and sharpening attitudes and interpersonal skills; sufficient physical infrastructure to support growth; predictable state and local operating conditions; a fair and balanced legal climate; and reliable, competitively priced energy. That’s why workforce training and President Obama’s energy plan are key topics of discussion at our state Chamber’s 3rd Annual Manufacturing Summit at the Sheraton Four Seasons in Greensboro on June 8. (You can learn more and register online at www.ncchamber.net.)

 

Now is the time to change the way we think and talk about manufacturing in North Carolina. Have there been substantial manufacturing job losses in our state in recent years? Yes, but as a top manufacturing state, North Carolina had more to lose when the sector started shifting and changing in a flatter world.

 

Here’s what we should sound like when we talk about North Carolina manufacturing: It drives private-sector development and innovation, leading to advanced technologies that improve our quality of life. With its “multiplier effect,” manufacturing accounts for nearly 30 percent of the state’s total employment. In fact, manufacturing has a greater multiplier effect on the rest of our economy than any other industry sector. For every manufacturing job in North Carolina, an additional 1.7 jobs are created. Without manufacturing, North Carolina’s economy would be approximately two-thirds its size today.

 

With all that manufacturing has to offer and its critical role in our economy, it is imperative that state leaders, policymakers, media and the public understand its benefits and the impact of our collective decision-making on its future here. It is in the state’s best interest to ensure competitive investment conditions for a healthy manufacturing sector for the foreseeable future. Doing so will preserve and deliver good jobs for North Carolinians.

 

Manufacturing is critical to our state’s economic health, and the North Carolina Chamber is committed to ensuring its contributions well into the future.