CHAPTER 1
one-shot piece of legislation. A National Infrastructure Bank could provide a steady stream of
capital to split the cost with private sector partners. It is crucial to partner with the private sector
and build on its talent for innovation. Several states have established infrastructure banks of
their own, but states can’t independently address major national or regional challenges, such
as modernizing the energy grid or repairing extensive areas of
“The kind of infracoastal erosion. A National Infrastructure Bank would also play
structure investment
a significant role in revitalizing the U.S. manufacturing sector
with the potential to
and providing many more well-paying jobs.
create millions of jobs
Manufacturing can still offer good jobs to American workers
is public works—for
with some postsecondary education but not necessarily a fourexample, building
year degree. Workers with less than a college degree often end
roads, repairing
up in lower paid service-sector jobs. The average wage of a
bridges and dams, and
retail salesperson is $10.10 per hour, while the average wage of
renovating schools and
a nonsupervisory manufacturing worker is $19.23.52 As a share
office buildings.”
of the U.S. economy, the
manufacturing sector is much smaller than it was a
half-century ago, when one in four jobs was in manufacturing.53 Today, retail workers outnumber manufacturing workers by almost two to one.54 From 1979 to
2009, 41 percent of all U.S. manufacturing jobs (low-,
middle-, and high-skill) disappeared.55 The pace of job
loss grew faster with each passing decade. By the end of
2009, manufacturing’s share of total U.S. employment
had fallen to less than 9 percent.56
Any job loss is painful for the person and family who
suffer it. But for the economy as a whole, the loss of
manufacturing jobs is worse than other losses because
manufacturing has one of the largest multiplier effects.
For every job created in manufacturing, there are at
least 2.5 jobs created in other sectors.57 Policymakers
may be willing to let low-skill manufacturing jobs disappear, but the loss of middle- and high-skill jobs should
be of serious concern. Manufacturing is still a key
driver of innovation.
Revitalizing the manufacturing sector is not only
necessary to spur innovation and maintain productivity growth, but also to capitalize on the emerging
market for clean energy technologies. Studies show
that a major factor in determining which countries
lead in emerging technologies is where the production is located.58 In the early 2000s, for example, U.S.
firms began to relocate high-tech battery production
www.bread.org/institute?
The unemployment rate
for African Americans
follows the ups and
downs of the overall
rate, except that it is
usually twice as high.
Brand X Pictures
? 2014 Hunger Report? 49
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