This Friday is National Manufacturing Day and all of us who work on behalf of Ohio businesses are aware of the impact the manufacturing industry has on Ohio’s economy. The most recent figures obtained from the Ohio Development Services Agency confirm its overwhelmingly significant effects: at the end of the fourth quarter in 2011, there were 16,159 manufacturing establishments in Ohio, corresponding to 637,000 jobs and $35.2 billion in manufacturing wages. Over 12 percent of Ohio’s employment was still in the manufacturing sector.
Even though Ohio manufacturing has not yet fully recovered from the recession of 2008-10, the number of Ohio manufacturing jobs has increased since 2011, totaling 659,900 at the end of August 2013, a 3.6 percent increase over the last 20 months. All of these statistics attest to the importance of redoubling our efforts to do whatever we can – cut taxes, reduce energy costs and/or improve the training and skills of graduates of Ohio’s K-12, colleges and adult technical schools – to enhance the competitiveness of manufacturing in Ohio so we can attract new business investment and jobs to our state.
There is no question but that manufacturing will remain a critical component of the potential growth of our state economy. Despite recent setbacks, manufacturing remains the linchpin, the cornerstone of Ohio’s economic future. In honor of National Manufacturing Day on October 4th, we at the Ohio Chamber salute all Ohio manufacturers that have chosen and continue to have facilities and employ people in our state, and we look forward to working with you to make your company as competitive as we possibly can.
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