Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by mikeash 2453 days ago
Manufacturing employment has been on a long, steady decline. Manufacturing output is experiencing steady growth and has never been higher.

The US is the second largest manufacturer in the world and will stay that way for the foreseeable future. Giving up on it would be a huge mistake. What we can’t do is count on it to employ the masses.
2 comments
rusk 2453 days ago
Isn’t that just cooking the books though? I mean if the rump of manufacturing gets done in a low cost economy, and mere assembly is performed onshore, what kind of manufacturing is that really
link
mikeash 2453 days ago
No, the US builds lots of real stuff. It’s not just assembly. Not by a long shot.

The reason the trends are in opposite directions is because of increasing productivity. The number of worker-hours needed to build a car is much lower than in the past because of improved efficiency.

link
brenden2 2453 days ago
My bad. You articulated it better than me.
link