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NC Chamber Continues to Champion Manufacturers’ Essential Contributions to NC

| Manufacturing

As the exclusive state affiliate for the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), the NC Chamber is proud to be the statewide voice for manufacturers of all sizes in North Carolina. Accounting for 19.4 percent of our GDP and employing more than 10 percent of our total workforce (roughly 440,000 jobs), manufacturing remains the most powerful and dynamic sector of our state’s economy. Manufacturers drive growth, create jobs and help lead North Carolina forward to embrace cutting-edge trends in technology and innovation. And in the era of the truly global jobs race, a state’s economy must strike the right balance between domestic and foreign investment – without overreliance on one or the other – in order to continue supporting a healthy, competitive manufacturing sector.

Fortunately, this recent article from the Winston-Salem Journal demonstrates that North Carolina is one of the states that is hitting that smart balance. According to the article, a report released today by the nonprofit Organization for International Investment shows that about 70 percent of manufacturing jobs in the state are supported by domestic companies, with about three-in-ten supported (directly or indirectly) by foreign investments. The takeaway here is that, as support for foreign investments has proven to be a major driver of the kinds of high-tech manufacturing jobs our state’s fully modernized economy has come to rely on, it is a sound strategy for North Carolina to cultivate a diverse manufacturing portfolio that encourages investments from a variety of sources.

The NC Chamber recognizes the essential contributions of all manufacturing jobs in North Carolina, whether supported by domestic or foreign investments. Over the coming months, we will be helping to broaden awareness about those contributions by spreading the word about our members’ involvement in Manufacturing Day (MFG DAY), the annual day of appreciation for the manufacturing industry celebrated by businesses and pro-growth organizations across the nation.

The official date for MFG DAY in 2016 is set for Oct. 7 (although organizations are encouraged to host events whenever is most convenient for you) so visit the official MFG DAY website to learn more about the new event planning resources available and start planning your organization’s event today. In the coming weeks the NC Chamber will be sending out a survey to collect information about your events so we can begin getting the word out to our members. Stay tuned.

Gary J. Salamido
Vice President, Government Affairs
North Carolina Chamber