New manufacturing jobs rely on technology and innovation

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nationally respected survey and census of manufacturing jobs released last week presents challenging information for Mississippi. It clearly shows why northeast Mississippi leaders must continue aggressive new-jobs recruitment, especially spinning off the Toyota Mississippi development.

The Manufacturer's News publishes a Mississippi Manufacturers Directory, and the measurements for the 12-month period ending March 31, 2007, show manufacturing employment declined in northeast Mississippi and in Tupelo/Lee County, especially compared with the southeastern counties of our state.

Statewide, manufacturing jobs dropped 2.1 percent in the reporting period, but the southeastern counties, including Jackson County and Harrison County, increased 2.5 percent, this despite the shock of Hurricane Katrina in August 2005.

The report cites the 2006-2007 measure as the sixth consecutive year of manufacturing job losses - a span, in political terms, spread across Republican and Democratic gubernatorial administrations and at a time of increasing partisanship in the Legislature.

The Illinois-based firm is a reporting agency and is not an advocate for a particular development position or ideology.

This summary paragraph from the report paints a mostly discouraging picture of recent activity:

"(Manufacturers News) data indicate Mississippi's manufacturing sector began to plummet between 2001 and 2002, with employment dropping by 4.4 percent. Between 2002 and 2003 a greater loss of 6.5 percent was recorded, and then 5.5 percent between 2003 and 2004. Since then, Mississippi continued losing manufacturing jobs, but at half the previous rate. The total loss for the six years equals 61,000 jobs or 23 percent. The number of reported plants fell by 309 or 8 percent over the same time."

The total jobs loss number is a major concern, even though not unexpected in light of forecasts from inside the individual industrial sectors.

Not surprisingly, the report lists "food and lumber" as particularly painful losses. Northeast Mississippi is reeling from the closure of Bryan Foods (a Sara Lee company), a homegrown business dating to the early 20th century, most recently employing more than 1,000. Its doors closed last month - 1,000 jobs wiped out of the active, salary-earning labor force, for now. Clay County's manufacturing employment dropped by over half as a result, the report said.

The report notes that "automotive and plastics industries continue to expand," and that only 1.4 percent of the 2006 overall losses came because of relocations to other states or nations.

The report shows Mississippi has 3,629 manufacturers employing 204,878 workers, but the average size is relatively small: 64 percent of Mississippi manufacturers profiled by MNI have 15 or fewer employees.

The ranking of cities and manufacturing employment places Lee County second at 15,303 jobs, behind defense industry-driven Jackson County at 16,114. Lee County had held the top spot in the previous manufacturing count. "Southeastern Mississippi accounts for the most manufacturing activity with 33 percent, or 67,635 of the state's jobs, 23 percent of which are located in Jackson County. Northwest Mississippi accounts for the fewest jobs, with just 16.3 percent of the state's industrial employment. MNI data shows northeast Mississippi lost the most jobs at 8.4 percent (56,995 to 52,221), but jobs were up 1,433 (2.1 percent) in the southeast counties."

Furniture manufacturing, despite widely reported losses, employs the most workers with 18,414 related jobs listed in the 2007 register (9 percent of the statewide total).

The report shows that in economic development and competition there's no such thing as standing still. All manufacturing, in varying degrees, depends on and thrives on innovation and efficiency.

The new jobs in Mississippi clearly are rising from technology and innovations, and our future depends on how many new jobs are driven by those strengths.

Statewide, manufacturing jobs dropped 2.1 percent during the last 12 months, but the southeastern counties, including Jackson and Harrison counties, increased 2.5 percent, despite the shock of Hurricane Katrina.

Southeastern Mississippi accounts for the most manufacturing activity with 33 percent, or 67,635 of the state's jobs, 23 percent of which are located in Jackson County. Northwest Mississippi accounts for the fewest jobs, with just 16.3 percent of the state's industrial employment.

An editorial opinion of the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, P.O. Box 909, Tupelo, MS 38802-0909.