Colorado’s seasonally adjusted manufacturing employment peaked at 192,700 employees in April 1998. On an annual basis, it has been declining since. As 2011 comes to an end, it appears that net jobs will be added for the first time in Colorado in 13 years.
Some economists are projecting that manufacturing job losses will resume in 2011. Manufacturers face a number of challenges. The following questions point to some of the challenges they face in terms of demand, the workforce, and the industry.
Demand
• Will there be sufficient demand for manufactured goods given the fact that consumers have received minimal increases in wages and disposable income?
• Will manufacturers be able to pass on increased input costs to customers and maintain demand?
• How much longer can shipments and output increase without significant increases in the size of the workforce?
• What impact will personal and private sector debt have on demand?
Workforce
• How much longer will productivity increase without adding labor?
• What is being done to address the mismatch between the skills that manufacturers need and a different set of skills in the workforce?
• What is the role of the older worker in the workforce? Are there sufficient workers in the pipeline to replace them when they retire?
• Has Colorado lost its pool of trained workers as a result of the Lost Decade?
• What is being done to educate high school and college students about the importance of learning skills that can be transferred between professions?
• What type of training opportunities are available to meet the changing needs of the manufacturing workforce?
The Industry
• How will changes in the manufacturing sector affect the growth of Colorado’s high tech cluster?
• Has Colorado lost its critical mass of manufacturers?
• Has Colorado lost the supply chain associated with the decline in its manufacturers?
• What is being done to retain existing manufacturers and attract new manufacturers?
• How will second and third generation manufacturers transition their businesses into the future?
For additional information on the Colorado manufacturing sector go to https://cber.co. or click on Colorado Manufacturing Update.
©Copyright 2011 by CBER.