Post: May. 1, 2019
From NAM (National Association of Manufacturers) By Michael Short
National Association of Manufacturers President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement ahead of tomorrow’s White House infrastructure meeting:
“Every year, America is falling further behind on infrastructure. Investment is currently only one-third of what it was in 1960, and without action on infrastructure, we will lose 5.8 million jobs by 2040. Any serious legislative proposal must fix the Highway Trust Fund—through various user fees—and be transformational in its scope so that manufacturers and the country are positioned for future success. That’s why manufacturers are calling for at least $1 trillion in much needed new investment. Millions of jobs and our nation’s competitiveness are at stake, and it is time for our elected leaders to act.”
Link to NAM’s Press Release
In February, the NAM released “Building to Win”—an ambitious initiative to revitalize our nation’s failing infrastructure. Originally released ahead of the 2016 elections, the updated proposal serves as a blueprint to repair our roads, bridges, rails, airports, ports and waterways and revolutionize the infrastructure that makes the American Dream possible. It represents manufacturers’ vision for the path forward—one that will enhance the competitiveness of manufacturers and improve the lives of manufacturing workers and all Americans.
Read NAM’s report Building to Win
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Governor Andrew Cuomo’s REDC Round 9 initiative has been announced, with $750 million in state economic development resources available to fund regional economic development projects through the Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) process. Since 2011, the first year of the initiative, the CFA has enabled businesses, municipalities, not-for-profits and members of the public to apply for multiple sources of funding from dozens of state agency programs through a single application, for projects that create jobs and help to revitalize communities.
The region will hold CFA Workshops and Information Sessions throughout the 7-county Mid-Hudson region. Below are dates and locations of upcoming workshops and information sessions you can attend. Also provided below are links to Round 9 REDC guidelines and other resources that will guide you through the process of submitting a CFA application.
The following Round 9 Resources are now available on the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council’s website (http://www.regionalcouncils.ny.gov/mid-hudson):
CFA Application Opens: May 1, 2019
CFA Application Deadline: July 26, 2019 by 4:00pm SHARP
Mid-Hudson CFA Workshops – Workshops include an overview of the application and the CFA process followed by informational breakout Q&A sessions with representatives from agencies with funding opportunities available through this year’s CFA.
**Please note, all RSVPs should be submitted through the website**
May 14, 2019
9:00AM – 11:30AM
Mount Saint Mary College, Aquinas Hall (Orange County)
330 Powell Ave, Newburgh, NY 12550
Click here to RSVP
June 5, 2018
9:00AM – 11:30AM
Westchester Community College, Gateway Center (Westchester County)
75 Grasslands Rd, Valhalla, NY 10595
Click here to RSVP
Mid-Hudson CFA Information Sessions – In addition to the CFA Workshops listed above, the region will be hosting CFA Information Sessions in the counties where a CFA workshop will not be held. Info sessions are hosted by ESD team members ready to answer questions regarding the CFA process.
**Please note, all RSVPs should be submitted through the website**
May 16, 2019
4:00pm-5:30pm
CVI Complex (Sullivan County)
165 Sullivan Ave, Ferndale, NY 12734
Click here to RSVP
May 17, 2019
9:00am-10:30am
Community Center (Rockland County)
31 Zukor Road, New City, NY 10956
Click here to RSVP
May 22, 2019
10:00am-11:30am
Putnam County Training & Operations Center, Auditorium (Putnam County)
112 Old Route 6, Carmel, NY 10512
Click here to RSVP
May 23, 2019
10:00am-11:30am
Ulster County – Location TBD
More information available soon!
June 12, 2019
10:00am-11:30am
Marist College Boathouse (Dutchess County)
3399 North Road, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
Click here to RSVP
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From IndustryWeek, By Michael Collins
A 2018 survey published by the Manufacturing Institute says that 3.5 million manufacturing jobs will need to be filled in the next decade and 2 million of those jobs will go unfilled. Now there are people who say this skills gap is a lie. But the fact is that as skilled people retired, manufacturing companies, particularly the multi-national corporations, did not invest in the advanced training programs to replace the retiring workers.
We are 500,000 workers short today. A recent article in Industry Week said that “during the first quarter of 2019 more than 25% of manufacturers had to turn down new business opportunities due to lack of workers.”
Read the full article
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From NAM Input (National Association of Manufacturers)
American workers saw their pay and benefits increase 0.7 percent in the first quarter, reports the AP. More:
- “The data, released Tuesday by the Labor Department, suggests that growth in workers’ compensation has stalled in recent months. In the first quarter, wages and benefits increased 2.8% compared with a year earlier.”
- “That’s down slightly from a 2.9% annual gain in the final quarter of 2018. Still, workers’ compensation has picked up slowly. Five years ago, quarterly gains were closer to 0.4%.”
- “The job market is very tight, with the unemployment rate at 3.8%, near a 50-year low, and there are more open jobs than unemployed workers. That has pushed up wages over time, though the gains aren’t as healthy as they were the last time the jobless rate was this low.”
Meanwhile, a new Gallup poll finds that Americans haven’t been this confident in their personal finances since 2002. More from The Hill:
- “A Gallup poll released Tuesday found that 56 percent of respondents felt positively about their finances, with 12 percent rating their personal financial holdings as ‘excellent’ and 44 percent rating them as ‘good.’”
- “That overall confidence score is 10 points higher than in 2015, according to a Gallup poll taken at the time.”
- “Of those surveyed, 57 percent said that their financial outlook was improving year-to-year, an uptick of 10 points over a Gallup survey taken in 2016, according to a press release. That percentage is also the highest registered in Gallup surveys since 2002.”
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The Council of Industry network groups are an excellent resource for information and a great way to talk to other people in your field working in a variety of industries throughout the Hudson Valley. In April the EHS Network met to learn more about combustible dust and the CEO/ Executives Network met for a tour of Arconic Fastening Systems in Kingston. You can see what we have planned for May, June and beyond on our website calendar.
If your manufacturing process involves metal industries, food products, lumber or wood products you are probably aware of how dangerous and explosive dust can be but it is always smart to review the best practices necessary to stay safe and that why the Environment Health and Safety Network met on Friday, April 26th for a presentation on Combustible Dust by Nancy Garry, C.T. Male PC. Garry covered why this is an important topic, what industries need to be aware and what testing can be done. She covered the Dust Explosion Pentagon (conditions necessary for an explosion) and ways to prevent these from forming and hazard assessments that can be conducted. Attendees were also provided with reference tables and a few links to sites that offer further information on the topic.
On April 26 the Executives Network met for a tour of Arconic Fastening Systems in Kingston, NY. Arconic Fastening Systems is the premier designer and manufacturer of aerospace and industrial fasteners, latches, bearings, fluid fittings and installation tools. Their products are used nose to tail on commercial and military aircraft, as well as on jet engines, industrial gas turbines, automobiles, commercial transportation vehicles, wind turbines, solar power systems, and construction and industrial equipment. Arconic has been in business since 1933, and a Council of Industry member since 1967. The company was formerly known as Alcoa Fastening Systems and Huck Manufacturing Company. Their customers include Boeing, Airbus, Peterbilt, Kenworth and many more. We saw a variety of tools in all sizes and the process behind their production.
We take a break from Network meetings in May to focus on our Manufacturing Champions Award Breakfast on May 17th at the Powelton Club in Newburgh but we start back up in June. The Human Resources Network will meet on June 7th for a presentation on Wage & Hour Law from Douglas Gerhardt, Harris Beach PLLC. This presentation will cover the essentials of Wage and Hour issues including recent developments as well as compensable time such as “off the clock”, meals, rest, waiting and on-call time. We will explore some exempt employee issues as well. Attendees will walk away with a solid understanding (or refresher) on the key elements of wage and hour issues and be better prepared to address them in their workplace. We will also have another CEO/ Executives Network Tour, this time of McKesson Corporation Distribution Center in Montgomery. Our EHS Network will be back in the fall with a presentation on confined space and HR will have an I9/ Immigration update in September, watch our calendar and emails for more information on all of these.
