Tariffs, Manufacturing, and Good Jobs
Vast sectors of American manufacturing rapidly shrank following the enactment of NAFTA and other free trade agreements in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, and too little was done too slowly to help the workers and communities left high and dry. Many places still haven’t recovered. Given this, it isn’t surprising that policymakers, communities, and voters want to see those jobs and plants come back.
The Trump administration has argued that the recent mass tariffs will reshore manufacturing jobs. But nothing about these jobs makes them inherently high quality, with good wages and benefits, and there is no guarantee that companies that make things here at home will voluntarily do right by their workers. Indeed, America’s industrialization was paved by the immiseration of millions of workers — often immigrants, many children — whose labor helped transform the nation into a leading economic power.
It wasn’t until unions took firm root in manufacturing that employment in the sector could bring a measure of stability to workers and their families. However, the rate of unionization has dropped from a third of all factory workers a half century ago to 8% today. Consequently, these workers now earn little more on average than any other, and the administration’s indiscriminate tariffs have been accompanied by attempts to rapidly destroy decades of federal labor protections and dismantle workers’ few avenues of recourse.
This edition of Resource Roundup offers a selection of perspectives on tariffs, their impact, and the nature of manufacturing employment. We open with a call in Labor Notes for a more targeted approach to tariffs in the auto industry that prioritizes workers’ rights. In addition, learn more about how workers view the tariffs in reporting from the Washington Post. Learn from EPI about how South Carolina’s manufacturing growth strategy hasn’t meant the creation of good quality jobs. Finally, hear from a former DOL leader about the department’s critical role keeping workers safe — and about the threats it currently faces.
Labor Notes | Viewpoint: Will Trump’s Tariffs Be Good for Auto Workers?
The strength of organized labor rests on the principle of solidarity — and that doesn’t stop at the border. UAW autoworker Sean Crawford saw as much when workers at a Mexican plant refused overtime while US workers were on strike, in 2019.
Inspired by this experience, and responding to the chaotic rollout of universal tariffs, including on auto parts originating from Mexico and Canada that are used in US manufacturing, Crawford argues that tariffs should be targeted and tied to clear labor standards. Applying tariffs only to auto imports that come from factories that take advantage of workers could help prevent domestic labor being undercut and support workers’ rights abroad.
The Washington Post | We asked 500 manufacturing workers about Trump’s tariffs
One of the primary justifications of recent tariffs is that they will help domestic industry and workers. And many Americans, including politicians from both parties, believe that increasing the country’s manufacturing capacity is a worthy goal. However, the majority of manufacturing workers — who have firsthand knowledge of their companies’ place in the international supply chain — think that President Trump’s tariffs will hurt them.
Learn more about how workers view tariffs in the Washington Post.
Economic Policy Institute | The State of Working South Carolina
When new manufacturing plants are built in the US — many with public subsidies — it is often in places like South Carolina. In South Carolina and much of the rest of South, nonunionized workplaces dominate, and state regulators are indifferent, even hostile, to the needs of workers. Consequently, their wages are lower than in states with stronger histories of labor organizing and have dropped significantly over the past decade.
Explore EPI’s analysis of working conditions in South Carolina here.
The Century Foundation | What Cuts to the Department of Labor Will Mean for You
The Department of Labor supports training, like apprenticeships, to help workers get jobs, protects them in the workplace, and provides a safety net should they be hurt on the job. Furthermore, it works internationally to identify unfair and abusive labor practices, including forced labor, that violate human rights and can undercut domestic workers and businesses. Despite the DOL’s role striving to improve workers’ security, the administration has sought to eliminate broad swathes of the department.
Read former DOL head Julie Su’s commentary on the importance of a strong labor department that acts in the interest of workers.
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