Alliance for American Manufacturing's #AAMeter Shows U.S. at + 26,000 Jobs Toward President Obama's Second Term Goal of 1 Million New Manufacturing Jobs.
Manufacturing sector gains 14,000 jobs in February
The latest monthly U.S. jobs report shows America's manufacturing sector gained 14,000 jobs in February, 2013. This is below the pace of roughly 20,000 factory jobs that need to be gained each month in order to meet the president's goal.
Commented Scott Paul, President of the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM):
"Washington needs to focus on a jobs plan. It's great to see the unemployment rate come down and to see the private sector add so many jobs in February. But I'm concerned that manufacturing is lagging behind, despite all the lip service given to its resurgence. Smart public policies to support private sector job growth, particularly in manufacturing, can change this, but not if Washington isn't focused on a jobs plan.
"Although it's still early, the climb to a million new manufacturing jobs by 2017 is becoming steeper and steeper."
THE #AAMETER
During the 2012 presidential campaign, President Obama set a goal of creating 1 million new manufacturing jobs in his second term. To follow the president's progress, the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM) has launched a Jobs Tracker, the #AAMeter.
By using monthly jobs data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), AAM can maintain a running monthly tally of manufacturing jobs created during the president's second term.
“Manufacturing is the key to a strong middle class, and the American people have made clear that they want ‘Made in America,’” said Paul. “While the American people understand that economic course corrections take time, they want to see growth in manufacturing employment."
In a recent editorial in USA Today, Paul explained that President Obama can increase employment in the nation’s manufacturing sector if he takes action to hold China accountable for its continued violations of trade agreements, and follows through on campaign pledges to close tax loopholes that encourage outsourcing.
“As hard as it is to believe, the United States is the only major industrial nation that does not have a cohesive national manufacturing strategy,” said Paul. “We’ve outlined steps the president should to help meet his manufacturing jobs goal. If the Administration and Congress show a genuine willingness to act on these common sense policies, we’ll see our Jobs Tracker move toward 1 million jobs gained.”
Click here to visit the #AAMeter.