Editor's Note: Will Corporate Optimism Be Sustained?
Policies yet to be implemented by the Trump administration could affect the current mood of corporate optimism — for better or worse.
Q1 2017
Nonetheless, countering the promised corporate tax cuts is Trump’s threat to slap tariffs on companies that move jobs overseas and then import their products back to the U.S. Although this measure has not been clearly defined, it could meet with corporate resistance, as noted by Michael R. Strain of the American Enterprise Institute in a recent New York Times article.
President Trump has also promised to create 25 million new jobs, many of which will be in the factories he plans to bring back to U.S. shores. However, as noted by Scott Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, “The offshored jobs President Trump has promised to return will not look like those that left. Manufacturing industries change rapidly, and so do the skill sets they require of workers upon entry.”
Many companies are already struggling to find workers to fill today’s high-skill manufacturing jobs. Bureau of Labor Statistics figures confirm that 325,000 manufacturing jobs were unfilled in December 2016. And 80 percent of the 400 U.S. executives, most of whom are with manufacturing firms, recently surveyed by human resources consultancy Randstad Sourceright say a shortage of sufficiently skilled workers will affect their ability to hire in the coming year.
Additionally, many skilled workers in the U.S. today are working under the H1-B visa program, which is due to come under a lot of scrutiny by the Trump administration. How the new administration addresses the issues of immigration and workforce training, as well as trade agreements, offshoring, and other concerns remains to be seen, but it will ultimately affect the sustainability of corporate optimism, plans for growth, and business competitiveness.
Project Announcements
Global Resources International Plans Columbia, Alabama, Operations
03/21/2023
HistoWiz Establishes Queens, New York, Central Laboratory
03/21/2023
Big Fish Games Establishes New Orleans, Louisiana, Talent Hub
03/21/2023
Sonoco Protective Solutions Expands Owosso, Michigan, Operations
03/21/2023
ABB Robotics Expands Auburn Hills, Michigan, Production Campus
03/21/2023
Volkswagen Group Plans St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada, North American Gigafactory
03/20/2023
Most Read
-
2022 Top States for Doing Business Provide an Environment for Business Growth
Q3 2022
-
37th Annual Corporate Survey: Economic Pressures Exerting Greatest Effect on Decision-Makers
Q1 2023
-
36th Annual Corporate Survey: Executives Focus on Labor, Energy, Shipping Costs
Q1 2022
-
The Top Investment Location Prospects for Aerospace Manufacturing
Q1 2023
-
Strategies to Overcome Intensifying Industrial Real Estate Challenges
Q1 2023
-
How Are Economic Developers Partnering to Solve Workforce Challenges?
Q1 2023
-
What in the World? FDI Trends to Watch in 2023
Q1 2023