As we mark Labor Day, there’s a growing recognition of the importance of manufacturing—whether that means cars, semiconductor chips, or the factories where these goods are produced.
The allure of manufacturing persists. Many claim it played a pivotal role in recent elections, and I tend to think that tariff policies—regardless of one’s stance—might entice some manufacturing back to the U.S.
That’s a noble goal. After all, producing goods domestically is vital for both a robust economy and national security.
Over the last half-century, we’ve seen industrialization take a toll on our manufacturing sectors, wiping out well-paying jobs in many communities. This has left countless families grappling with economic hardship. Between 1939 and 1979, manufacturing thrived in the United States and accounted for 22% of non-farm jobs. Yet by 2019, this figure had plummeted to 9%, and a further decline took it to 8% in 2024.
The loss of these jobs devastated entire communities, leading to the term “Rust Belt” to describe areas from Pennsylvania to Wisconsin. Offshoring has broken promises for millions of workers who believed that hard work would ensure a better life for themselves and their families.
It’s important to note that the successful manufacturing stories didn’t start in the factory itself. Overlooking the history surrounding our manufacturing capabilities could undermine any hopes of a revitalization.
Much wealth was generated by those at the top of the manufacturing hierarchy. Unfortunately, that wealth wasn’t always shared equally with the workers.
Working in a factory wasn’t always the dream job. Conditions varied greatly and weren’t always safe. By 1900, the Industrial Revolution had fully taken hold; industrial accidents claimed the lives of 35,000 workers annually, with injuries affecting another 500,000, all while wages remained meager.
Before the establishment of the United Steel Workers Union in 1942, children frequently faced 12-hour workdays in hazardous environments for low pay. Prior to the significant sit-in strikes by the United Autoworkers union in the 1930s, auto workers earned an average of just 61 cents per hour—about $14 in today’s currency. Just five years after those strikes, average wages rose significantly, pushing many into the middle class.
Between 1880 and 1923, during the coal boom, around 70,000 miners lost their lives due to dangerous conditions. To combat these hazards, miners and their families banded together to form the United Miners Union.
Before organized labor, benefits such as work leave, health care, safe working conditions, and retirement pensions were scarce—not just in manufacturing, but across industries. The risks and sacrifices required took a toll, but it’s those very sacrifices that laid the groundwork for many families to enter the middle class.
However, the introduction of NAFTA in 1992, along with China’s rise a decade later, led to a significant drop in jobs in the U.S. manufacturing sector and fewer workers who were unionized. Companies increasingly sought cheaper labor globally. In 1980, 32.3% of manufacturing employees were union members, but by 2023, that percentage had dwindled to 7.9%, slightly above the overall private sector rate of 5.9%. This decline in union membership has negatively impacted job quality in manufacturing.
Currently, about 34% of families of manufacturing workers rely on public assistance programs. In sectors relying on workers provided through human resource agencies, that figure jumps to 50%, similar to fast food workers.
This Labor Day, it’s justifiable to envision the creation of tens of thousands of new manufacturing jobs. The U.S. truly needs a return to the kind of work that once strengthened the middle class. Reviving factories is only a part of the solution. History indicates that it was the workers, backed by their unions, who fought for and secured fair manufacturing jobs.
A new manufacturing landscape, lacking empowered workers, will not replicate the manufacturing era we yearn for. Instead, it could lead us back to an older, less favorable status quo where many do not reap the rewards of a thriving middle class.
