Question about outsourcing.?

Question

This is a topic that's brought up time and time again and certainly a concern for all of us. Since we appear to be outsourcing the majority of our manufacturing, but the job market is still looking decent, unemployment is low, etc. Where is everyone working?

Please don't hit me with Mac Donald's and fast food, because around here, the people employed in that industry are generally teenagers and not people supporting families.

In all seriousness, have me moved from manufacturing to service oriented industries? I'm assuming that most of us who hang around on this forum are gainfully employed.

Answer 1

One hundred years ago in America, almost all manufacturing was situated in the north, and the south was mostly farmland. Over the last half of the 20th century, lots of manufacturing moved south, particularly furniture and textiles, but lots of other stuff, too. People were sure that this mass migration of industry to the south was going to bankrupt the north. It didn't: they all found jobs in new sectors, new growth, new industries.



Why did jobs move south? Southerners would work for less and didn't have a history of forming labor unions.

Answer 2

1. While we have lost a lot of manufacturing jobs, America still has some manufacturing base, at least as of today.



2. I am guessing that there are a number of jobs that have been created by new technologies that have replaced some of the manufacturing jobs. There weren't too many people working in the cable tv industry 40 years ago.



3. While I don't like the idea of sending any manufacturing jobs overseas, I can understand why we might let things like textiles and such overseas. It bothers me, though, when we allow things like cars, computers, etc... things with a technology base..to go overseas.

Answer 3

Don't you just love it? The libs are always oh so eager to hop in bed with the union bosses when an election is near. The rest of the time, they're hopping in bed with treehuggers that don't want anything built, mined, manufactured, or even explored, anywhere in the country. Mind you that building, mineing, and manufacturing all employ well paying union jobs. It begs the question as to what exactly do the dems really stand for? Do they really think that the whole country is to become a nation of only technocrates, or subsistance menial laborers?

Answer 4

There are always plenty of jobs to replace those that are shipped away, but there are millions of people who lose a career to another country, then have to step down to a much lower rung. Much of the reason for this is a matter of economic course, unless we restrict free trade then rising salaries and taxes will force corporations to sub out work to cheaper markets just to compete with each other and the foreign companies who are allowed to operate in the US.

It can be a painful migration to a 30 year manufacturing employee who was making $60,000 + a year, and now has to enter a morphed job market at 55 years old, but attrition will naturally transit the change going forward.

Answer 5

Our economy was always base on mining, manufacturing and forestry. Environmentalist have pretty much killed all three. There are a few open pit mines left, but many minerals can be imported cheaper. The steel industry is all but dead. Manufacturing is just about all off shore. American made cars are now Toyota's and Honda's. The majority of our timber comes from Canada and I believe you would be hard pressed to find a saw mill that is allowed to fell or cut anything bigger than 30 inches in diameter. The base of our economy has been either priced by Unions and perks out of existence, the Longshoremens Union in S.F. make about $90.00 an hour or taxed to where they moved out of the country or regulated to death by lawmakers that pander to special interests. The manufacturer of Life Savers candy moved from Michigan to Canada because, like the Vermont milk pact that says what a gallon of milk sells for in this country, the sugar industry that is controlled by one family priced them out of the country. Michigan offered them a 5 million a year tax break to stay and Life Savers told them that they could save more than that on sugar in Canada. Special interest get the attention from the politicians because they have the ear of the agendized liberal press. We can't drill for oil or build a refinery, but we can pay nearly four bucks a gallon for fuel.

Answer 6

The truth of the matter is that more important, higher paying, skilled jobs (that require at least 2yrs college) simply cannot be outsourced. They have to be done by Americans. It may seem sad on the surfae that America is losing jobs, but the result is actually opposite. This has been studied by many economists. The jobs that are outsourced are low wage, low skilled, menial, & generally physical labor. Believe it or not outsourcing creates more jobs at home! Since outsourcing lowers a companies expenses by hiring out lower wage workers, leads to more business at home that has to be handled by someone. So this in effect, facilitates more employment! Bush has done a wonderful job in creating a robust labor market through his tax cuts. High taxation leads to decreased economic output and thus higher unemployment. Restricting outsourcing oddly enough, has the same NEGATIVE effect. With a company forced to pay higher wages for menial jobs, they will shed their workforce, creating more unemployment. Many countries with liberal govts have insititued this with a disastrous effect!

Answer 7

I work in the semiconductor industry. A few years ago my employer moved all the manufacturing to Asia. It made sense since almost all semiconductor manufacturing (our customers) are in Asia. We basically only have R and D and corporate in America.



We subcon a lot of programming to India. I think my company is finding out that it is not always cost effective since it takes about 3 tries for things to get done right, mainly because of communication issues.



I know a lot of people working in Pharma. It is hard to subcon that due to the FDA.



To those below me who think only labor and nonskilled positions are outsourced to China, think again. I know that GE and Rohm and Haas have opened up huge (1000 + worker) research facilities in China within the past 5 years. All the while they have decreased their research facilities in the US. These companies are actively recruiting Chinese PhD scientists on US campuses to fill these research facilities. So yes, everything can be outsourced. What really scares me is that GE has many military contracts. Is the development of our next fighter jet engines going to come from China? I don't trust GE, we need more oversight. If we don't have the edge in science and technology anymore, what is left?

Answer 8

The low unemployment number doesn't factor in the people who are no longer eligible for unemployment. So that number is fabricated.

I know people have been unemployed for a couple years, have cashed in there 401k's, and are living on that.



I know some people have gone to driver training and gotten there CDL's. There's always tons of jobs for truck drivers. Some go back to school and learn something in the medical field. And yes, you see more and more middle aged people working at fast food places.



I think that things will turn around and slowly but surely people will start finding work again. This is something similar that happened back in the 1970's.

Answer 9

Education and health services. This industry supersector is projected to grow faster, 30.6 percent, and add more jobs than any other industry supersector. About 3 out of every 10 new jobs created in the U.S. economy will be in either the healthcare and social assistance or private educational services sectors.



Healthcare and social assistance—including private hospitals, nursing and residential care facilities, and individual and family services—will grow by 30.3 percent and add 4.3 million new jobs. Employment growth will be driven by increasing demand for healthcare and social assistance because of an aging population and longer life expectancies.

Answer 10

Outsourcing is normal when you live in a technological advanced society. Gone are the days where you can rely on a basic high school education work at a factory for the rest of your life and collect a pension. I feel for the people who have not properly given themselves the opportunities but it is a fact of life they face. The staple jobs of today will be outsourced one day, replaced by a new industry. Our work force needs to learn to rise and meet the new demand.

Answer 11

Manufacturing follows the resources. We used to have raw materials and abundant labor, but we priced and regulated it until it became too expensive and we lost that market to Asia.



We are now in the process of restricting immigration and pricing ourselves out of the services market. That is why we are outsourcing our customer service to India and our computer programing to Eastern Europe.



A country can only support so many doctors, lawyers and accountants (describes me and my family). Somebody has to do the tough underpaid labor, and if you don't have an indigenous underclass willing to perform it, and cannot import it, your economy starts a long spiral towards mediocrity.

Answer 12

A lot of jobs have moved to the service industries (which includes many professional services like banking, accounting, architecture, engineering, legal work, etc.). The bottom line is that many service industries are about accumulating wealth not creating wealth.



In addition, I am not sure that we are outsourcing the majority of our manufacturing, just a larger share. In the long run, however, economies that derive income from creating intangible products (e.g. loans, insurance, etc.) as opposed ot tangible products (cars, food, etc.) tend to decline.

Answer 13

A lot of people work generating "intellectual property" in some form or another. Examples are movies or electronic designs that are fabricated oversees. Others work providing services such as research, management or financial services. Others do work at low wage jobs like McDonalds.



It's good because we can work at higher wage jobs, but it makes us dependent on unreliable partners like China for our manufactured products.

Answer 14

Most of the jobs being created today are in the service sector: Food industry (yes, Mac Donalds), retail, janitors and cleaners, home health aide, nursing, nursing aides, customer service reps, Etc. Computer and computer programing work is almost last on the list.

BTW, where I live alot all McDonalds workers are imigrants. I haven't seen a highschooler at a fast food restaurant in at least a decade.



http://www.bls.gov/oco/images/ocotjc08.gif

http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocochart.htm

Answer 15

The only jobs that are being outsourced are the ones where labor in the USA has priced itself out of the competitive market. Gee I guess that is why they are such socialists, cannot compete in the free market.

Answer 16

Have you ever heard of

skewed employment data???

Data can say anything you want it to say, and sadly the

data we used to be able to trust has been manipulated.

Our employment rate is NOT

UP. Especially a job that would support a family.

The people I know are working 3 jobs and still not

making ends meet.

The influx of immigrants has

further stretched the job

market.

Ask yourself, why is the standard of living in china

increasing very fast?

Ditto the same with India.

Yes, that's good for them.

But it's also our jobs they are

working at.

Why do Americans continue

to buy from U.S. companies

that outsource their labor

but still sell their products in

the U.S. at inflated prices....

all while said companies are

reaping out-of-sight profits?

Answer 17

I don't know... the area I live in has lost several mill factories... and the only thing that I've really noticed coming in is more retail stores that don't pay nearly as much?



but the unemployment rate here is a bit higher than the national average too...

Answer 18

Unemployment rate is based on how many applied for benefits for the previous month.



The mean income level for the US worker is down when adjusted for inflation. More people are working two jobs and there spouse is working as well. I don't give employment stats much credence regardless of the party in charge because they don't paint much of a picture. Thus, I'm not sure where the job market has shifted to. I do see more and more Cell Phone sales booths and Starbucks popping up.

Answer 19

service industrie must be truely multifaceted like all the financial services we are being sold and over sold all the time which inturn keep us in th deplorable debt we have because no one saves or buils values or makes good choices... because we've become such f'g puritans that the withch hunt is far greater than that at guantanamo or abu grib it on us--- the people... who are being beaten down and pacified with crap junk and bullshit.

Answer 20

I work at a software development company. Another family member is a truck driver (can't outsource that!), another works for an insurance firm.

Answer 21

Everybody is a salesman nowadays. This is the sad part. You work here, you need to sell something for another American.. so our money is rotating inside. You want to work in pure customer service.. get your ticket.. I will send you to India.

Answer 22

Yes, manufacturing in the US has been declining and the service sector has been growing.

Answer 23

No, we are all becoming employers and working from our homes that no one can steal the merchandise. Seriously.

Answer 24

one of my guesses would be small businesses hire people who were laid off from mega corporations

Answer 25

Libs make it hard to do anything else, they don't want us to Drill, Log or burn hydrocarbons...

Answer 26

Dunno, but I do know that the US has one of the highest corporate taxes, which forces a lot of jobs to move overseas.