I came to Raleigh and joined the North Carolina State University faculty in 1978. Then, manufacturing dominated the North Carolina economy. Manufacturing production accounted for almost a third of total economic output in the state, and 30% of the workforce had jobs in manufacturing. No other sector of the state economy came close to these numbers.
Today, the situation is dramatically different. Manufacturing accounts for about 16% of North Carolina’s economy, and 10% of workers are in manufacturing.
Much of the demise of manufacturing was due to increased international trade. Two international trade agreements – the WTO (World Trade Organization) and NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) – moved a large part of North Carolina’s manufacturing of textiles, apparel and furniture to countries with lower labor costs. Many communities in the state had their entire economies almost wiped out.
Fortunately, the North Carolina economy expanded in other industries, such as finance, pharmaceuticals, and technology and information. But many of the jobs in these industries require four-year college degrees or more. Unfortunately, a large share of the workers who lost their jobs in North Carolina’s traditional manufacturing don’t have this level of education. Hence, there’s been a mismatch between the skills of former manufacturing workers and the skills of the expanding jobs with better pay.
Yet, there may be hope. Economic conditions never…
