Ongoing problems with California's Bay Bridge has made it the site of a new campaign to encourage governments on all levels to hire American contractors instead of outsourcing.
The Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM) kicked off its national “Should Be Made in America” campaign on Monday, designed to encourage state and local governments to use domestic labor and resources rather than outsourcing to other countries.
BusinessNewsDaily.com contributor Chad Brooks writes that the AAM launched its campaign at the site of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge; a construction project awarded to a Chinese firm that has come under media scrutiny due to problems, including flawed materials and numerous delays.
Two billboards were erected at the site; each depicting the People’s Republic of China flag along with the words “The Bay Bridge: 100% Foreign Steel.” AAM Executive Director Scott Paul says the organization will use billboards, digital advertising, and online activism to promote domestic manufacturing jobs:
‘It’s time for our politicians to believe in American workers,’ said Paul, adding that awarding those projects to American companies would provide a much-needed economic boost. ‘Any of our leaders willing to outsource jobs to China could find one of our billboards next to their shiny new project.’
While failed infrastructure projects like the Bay Bridge provide major exposure and a convenient publicity opportunity, the goal of the “Should Be Made in America” is to change procurement policies at all levels of government. Brooks cites federal legislation such as the Invest in American Jobs Act of 2011 that will enhance efforts to eliminate outsourcing. He adds that 20 states have passed or are reviewing legislation that will “provide preferences for American steel and manufactured goods in state-level procurement.”
New York is one such state with a preferred source law. As noted here in January, the government has been employing close to one thousand people with disabilities to perform manufacturing and assembly duties. A study by the University of Buffalo Regional Institute reported that even greater observance of the preferred sourcing could lead to 400 more jobs for people with disabilities and generate $355 million for the state’s economy over the next four years.
Those figures don’t include spinoff activities, which have created an additional 266 jobs and $80 million in revenues, according to the report. That may not be quite the multiplier effect statistic touted by Jay Pelosky in The Huffington Post column quoted here last week, but it is still a testament to the positive impact that outsourcing jobs to Americans can have on our economy.
Brooks quotes Paul saying, “It’s time for our politician to believe in American workers” to help diminish America’s 8% unemployment rate. With the unemployment rate for people with disabilities hovering at nearly twice that amount, it is also time for the business sector to believe in hiring people with disabilities.
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Image by jdnx (Daniel Ramirez), used under its Creative Commons license.