America's Manufacturers Need More to Celebrate This Labor Day

Statement from Dennis Slater, President of Association of Equipment Manufacturers

MILWAUKEE, Sept. 6 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- There is no more appropriate time to talk about jobs and the American workforce than on Labor Day.  With the release of Friday's worsening unemployment numbers, this Labor Day is a difficult time for millions of Americans.

In his speech last week from the Oval Office, President Obama addressed the urgent task here at home of securing the American Dream for returning veterans and millions of unemployed workers, saying, "We must jumpstart industries that create jobs."  To achieve that goal, there is no better industry to jumpstart than American manufacturing – the backbone of a strong economy. Yet, a separate economic report Friday indicated U.S. manufacturing is expanding much slower than expected.  

Heavy majorities of voters nationwide and from both political parties agree that America needs to dramatically increase manufacturing jobs so our economy can keep pace with other countries. The construction equipment industry previously supported nearly 1.25 million jobs nationwide and represented more than $243 billion of the U.S. economy.  But manufacturing in the United States has lost 5.5 million jobs over the past 10 years and unemployment in the manufacturing sector remains notably higher than the national average.

America needs – and voters support – a new manufacturing policy that creates jobs.  And the solution is within our reach.

Jobs and the economy are popular topics in Washington right now, and many are talking about investing in America's infrastructure as an important first step.  But almost nobody is addressing the elephant in the room:  America needs a fully-funded, multi-year transportation bill, and we need it now.  There are few, if any, better drivers of economic growth and job creation than infrastructure investment, and it can't be done piecemeal.  We need a strategic vision for modernizing our country's infrastructure, and leaders with the courage to make it happen.  That's what will build America's manufacturing sector and our economy, and bring lasting benefits to America for generations to come.

Labor Day is a celebration of the social and economic achievements of American workers.  But there are far too many Americans out of work to truly celebrate this day.  Washington has thus far been tinkering around the edges of policies intended to help the manufacturing sector and drive economic growth.  It's now time for Congress and the Administration to take bold action to jumpstart American manufacturing and put people back to work.

About the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) - www.aem.org

AEM is the North American-based international trade group providing innovative business development resources to advance the off-road equipment manufacturing industry in the global marketplace. AEM membership comprises more than 800 companies and 200-plus product lines in the agriculture, construction, forestry, mining and utility sectors worldwide. AEM is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with offices in the capitals of Washington, D.C., Ottawa, Beijing and a European presence in Brussels.

SOURCE Association of Equipment Manufacturers