Chris McAllister
Intelligence m Every $1 in manufacturing product sales infuses an additional $1.37 in other sectors of the economy. m Manufacturing accounts for 1 in every 7 jobs in Minnesota. Manufacturers employ more than 36,000, or about 14 percent of all workers in central Minnesota.
m While other industries facilitate the regional exchange of dollars, manufacturers often do business with national and international clients. That brings in new money and generates economic growth.
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Central Minnesota’s manufacturing jobs pay an average of $40,133 a year, which is higher than the salaries of real estate agents, licensed practical nurses, radio announcers, and some commercial airline pilots.
“Quotations” “It’s not your granddaddy’s work. Manufacturing is clean. It’s high-tech. It’s exciting. It’s constantly changing and challenging.”
Although manufacturers face stiff international competition, Minnesota is the eighth-largest U.S. exporter of manufactured goods to China.
“(Precision manufacturing) busts the myth that manufacturing is a low-tech industry that employs a bunch of unskilled, unmotivated workers. The experts that work at these plants have to be 50-percent artist, 50-percent scientist, and 100-percent perfectionist.”
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Central Minnesota may see “green-collar” job increases as high as 37 percent, which should benefit the manufacturing industry. m
To recruit and retain manufacturing companies, communities must offer financing, infrastructure, workforce, and a “go-to” person.
“No doubt about it, these are challenging times, but with uncertainty comes change and opportunity. Manufacturing is alive and well, especially right here in Minnesota.”
–Sandy Voigt, Initiative Foundation –Dr. Robert Musgrove, Pine Technical College “The concern I have is that there is no public interest in (manufacturing). It isn’t that manufacturing is the only thing (that drives an economy), but in the final analysis, each community has to do something productive.”
“We do a disservice when we tell young people that manufacturing isn’t a prestigious career. Our employees are highlyskilled and well-compensated. We need top-notch people with critical thinking skills to grow our business.” –Jim Shear, Cambridge Metals & Plastics
–Dr. Fred Zimmerman, University of St. Thomas (retired) & author
6 Initiative Quarterly Magazine
IQmag.org
—Commissioner Dan McElroy Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development