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Jackie Searle

Perparim Gutaj

Political Science 1100

August 2, 2018

American Manufacturing and The Effects on Families and Uneducated

No matter what your profession – doctor, lawyer, architect, accountant – if you are an American, you
better be good at the touchy-feely service stuff, because anything that can be digitized can be outsourced
to either the smartest or the cheapest producer. ― Thomas L. Friedman

When I was a kid, my brother and I would play a game. Who could stay up the latest to

see mom after work? Mom came home about 12:30am. It was a game that neither of us could

win on most nights. Mom worked at a semiconductor plant, twelve hour shifts. We would see

her in the morning before school and that’s it. My dad was always with us during the week. On

Saturdays we would visit my dad, grandpa and grandma at the work site. They installed

insulation in walls and attics. I could never hug or kiss them because I would get “itchy” is what

they always told me. I was still happy to see them.

When I was eighteen, I decided to work at the semiconductor plant. We had visited the

plant when we were kids. Due to plant restrictions, we were never allowed past the waiting

room. Even the one time we made it past, there was another part that was completely off limits to

all visitors. I was intrigued. Why could we not see? There were many mysteries to the plant and I

wanted to know why.

Detailed below is what anybody entering the fabrication area (fab) would encounter. You

walk into a room with white walls and a blue rubber floor. On the floor as you entered, would be

rectangle sticky matt. I always compared it to a sticky fly trap, the kind you see hanging from the

ceiling and would trap flies that land on them. You would step on the matt and your feet would

stick to it. When you pulled your foot up, your shoe print would remain on the matt. These were
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used to remove any particles off the bottom of your shoes. Then you would sit on a white bench

to put on blue shoe covers, similar to the kind you would see in an operating room. You would

then pass through an air shower. An air shower is a small enclosed square space about five feet.

Once the door closed you would lift your arms, turn in a circle and air would blow on you from

all angles.

The next room was white and cold from the constant flow of air to keep particles out. I

had heard of “bunny suits” my entire life but wearing one was completely different. A bunny suit

is standard in any clean room. First you would put on a hair net and snood (made of the same

material a hair net is made of but covers your mouth and nose). The actual bunny suit is made of

a nylon type of material. You would put on a hood, which is just like a hood from a hoodie

sweatshirt but all alone. Then you would put on a loose fitting suit that covers the rest of your

body up to the ankles and hands. Next was the booties, which had snaps and elastic tops to keep

any remaining particles in the suit and hard soled bottoms like shoes. Last but not least, you

would add plastic gloves and safety glasses. Finally, pass through another air shower.

First thing you would see entering the fab is our shift supervisor at a computer in the

hallway. He was constantly monitoring all manufacturing machines and inventory. The halls

were filled with people pushing carts of product from one area to another. You feel the constant

flow of air. Our clean room was cleaner than an operating room (less particles in the air). You

could hear the chatter of people scheduling their machines and pages overhead. Even on a quiet

day you could hear the hum of the machines which didn’t seem to loud, until the power went out.

Down the hallway were rooms on both sides. Each for a different manufacturing process. Many

rooms had yellow lights, others had huge furnaces. Not to mention all the crazy chemicals used

in the process, from arsenic to acid. It would take 4 – 6 weeks for the completed product.
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After many years as an operator, I had worked my way up to a tech position. In my new

position I would help maintain inventory, start new product, pull supplies, help in the event of a

manufacturing problem and help rush important product along. There were only two other people

in the entire building that knew my job. We had to cover each other and be on call. I would

interact with supervisors, engineering, shipping and operators. Even handle all audits (outside

vendors that would evaluate our operations) that came through my area.

Then in October of 2014 it all changed. We had a visitor from the head plant in Maine.

Fairchild Semiconductor of Salt Lake was to be closed in July of 2015. All jobs were to be

transferred to South Korea. In just a matter of months 500 people would be out of work. We

were in shock. Being in the semiconductor business, layoffs were a common thing every few

years. You were always glad when it was over and you had survived another round. This time

there was no escaping it.

You can always find new employment but there was one thing that can never be replaced.

The family atmosphere that we had. We spent three to four days a week together, twelve hour

days. We were family. For example, whenever the shift supervisor would see us talking he would

say “What is this, holiday inn?!” He called us all brothers and sisters. If he was looking for

somebody we were known to be friends with, he would say, “Where’s your sister/brother?” I

think this helped us gain more of family culture, compared to just co-workers.

We spent the last two weeks having amazing fun. We changed a meeting room into a

theater and took over computer rooms. We played volleyball and basketball outside. We catered

in some amazing food for lunch. We had way too many card and board games to count. It was a

great way to end things.

I had an amazing family work experience for fifteen years. This was not the case for
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Tony Neumann and his family. When Tony and Terry Neumann first met, Tony had a factory job

in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Tony was making eighteen dollars an hour plus benefits. They bought

a house and had kids. Terry was a stay-at-home mom when Neumann was laid off in 1986.

Neumann now sought a job that had decent wages and healthcare for his family. Neumann

moved from job to job for the next 20 years. Terry now had to find a job to help with expenses.

The Neumann’s did eventually find decent paying jobs and affordable healthcare. Their new

schedules required them to work opposite shifts and the family life they once knew was a thing

of the past. The stress on their marriage due to finances was irreparable. They divorced and Terry

had a foreclosure on the house.

The impact that outsourcing has on a family can be devastating. Connie T. Schliebner and

John J. Peregoy authored the article “Unemployment Effects on the Family and the Child:

Interventions for Counselors.” I can relate to the article when they say, the unemployed worker

experiences a loss of daily routine and a loss of the social system. You now feel like a burden on

the family. Previously the displaced worker had been contributing financially and physically.

Now the family must re-evaluate the family roles. The displaced worker now has to evaluate job

prospects that are least likely to have competition from another country.

In the past it was difficult to imagine losing your job to someone in another country.

Today, it’s a reality. In today’s society manufacturing and the benefits of keeping it here in

America are under-estimated. American manufacturing is beneficial because it helps employ the

under educated and increase the middle class.

For over 40 years America has been making free trade agreements with other nations. In

1994 a new trade agreement was approved, The North American Free Trade Agreement

(NAFTA). This agreement made is easier for manufacturing companies to move their operations
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overseas (also called outsourcing), reducing manufacturing costs and to keep sale prices

competitive. As more manufacturing plants have been outsourced, it has had a negative effect on

middle class and uneducated Americans.

Why save the middle class? The middle class is the foundation of the economy by

spending the most money. Then placing the money back into education and investments. The

middle class helps create the next generation of entrepreneurs. Only one percent of entrepreneurs

come from the extremely rich or extremely poor. Leaving ninety-nine percent of entrepreneurs

coming from the middle class.

Many middle class Americans are losing their jobs due to outsourcing. This leaves many

American families with little resources. Most displaced workers have many obstacles preventing

them from finding equivalent employment. Only sixty-three percent of displaced workers

actually find other employment. Most have little to no education, have higher wages due to high

job tenure and most are close to retirement age. Unfortunately for the displaced worker the best

course of action is to remain in the manufacturing industry. Thus starting the cycle of gaining

employment to displaced worker again. Lori G. Kletzer has experience in this cycle.

Lori G. Kletzer is currently Provost and Dean of Faculty for Colby College. She was a

Professor of Economics at the University of California, Santa Cruz and a Senior Fellow at the

Peterson Institute for International Economics. Kletzer has a B.A. Vassear College and a Ph.D.,

University of California, Berkeley. Kletzer is the author of the article “Globalization and job

loss, from manufacturing to services.” Kletzer makes an educated statement when she says, “30

percent to 40 percent of displaced manufacturing workers are high school dropouts” (Kletzer 44).

The displaced workers are under educated for most jobs. When the manufacturing worker

is displaced, they most likely were earning middle class wages. It’s difficult for them to find a
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job making comparable wages. The dramatic financial change impacts the family relationships

and stability. It’s also more difficult to find a job. Being laid off may blemish the employee’s

reputation, unless given the opportunity to explain the circumstances.

J. Bradford Jensen has seen the comparison of re-employment for the uneducated vs.

educated worker. Jensen works for the Institute for International Economics. Jensen also

contributed to an article called “Tradable Services: Understanding the Scope and Impact of

Services Offshoring.” Jensen brings awareness to the issue of outsourcing when he says,

“manufacturing workers have historically accounted for more than half of displaced workers,

non-manufacturing workers accounted for 70 percent of displaced workers” (Jensen et al 1).

Many companies have started to outsource services like IT and financial. Although the

job loss from services is extremely lower than manufacturing, it opens the door for more job loss.

Service workers have a higher rate of re-employment, about seventy-five percent. Most of these

workers have a higher education than those from manufacturing.

The amount of manufacturing job loss is over whelming and effects all divisions. William

Boone Bonvillian is the director of MIT Washington office. Bonvillian was previously senior

policy advisor in the U.S. Senate. He has written books on topics including “Technological

Innovation in Legacy Sectors” and “Structuring an Energy Technology Revolution.” He has also

written the article “Donald Trump’s Voters and the Decline of American Manufacturing.”

Bonvillian makes the bold statement, “all manufacturing sectors saw job losses between 2000

and 2010” (Bonvillian 31).

This is a reflection of how the manufacturing industry is diminishing and the amount of

jobs lost. This amount of jobs will impact many families. Families that will now be more likely

to descend the financial ladder thus decreasing the middle class and possibly leading to more
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opportunity for familial issues. Lester Kuhl has a great suggestion that can dramatically decrease

the impact of outsourcing on families.

Lester Kuhl is a consultant with Future System Technology and a graduate engineer with

a broad management background. He authored articles presented in the 2004 WFS conference's

“Thinking Creatively in Turbulent Times” and in the 2010 WFS conference's “Strategies and

Technologies for a Sustainable Future.” Kuhl is a contributing author to the website called World

Future Society. Kuhl is also the author of “Maintaining a Nation's Middle Class in the Global

Economy” and knows about how outsourcing is affecting the middle class. Kuhl makes an

amazing point when he says, “americans need to consider what jobs can only be performed in

America and restructure these into middle-class jobs” (Kuhl 84).

I feel this is a great proposal. This could help America maintain manufacturing and in the

restructuring of these jobs could help the middle class increase. This proposal would be one of

the best solutions for companies to remain in America and to keep prices competitive.

The impact of outsourcing has made an impact in my home. My family had to re-evaluate

our life style. We were close to purchasing a house, now that dream is on hold. Although I am

very grateful to still have a roof over our head and food on the table. We are now dependent on

my husband and his wages. We can only hope he remains in good health.

In conclusion, America could benefit from keeping manufacturing here in America. The

middle class is shrinking and manufacturing helps employ the uneducated. Not everyone has the

opportunity to finish high school or pursue a degree. In retaining American manufacturing, we

give these people a chance at surviving. The factory workers can still provide for their family

and not live in poverty. Until the time is right for them to pursue further education, my time is

now.
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Works Cited

Bonvillian, William B. "Donald Trump's Voters And The Decline Of American

Manufacturing." Issues In Science & Technology 32.4 (2016): 27-39. Academic Search

Premier. Web. 22 July 2016.

Friedman, L. Thomas. The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century. New

York: Picador, 2007. Print.

Jensen, J. Bradford. Kletzer, Lori G. “Tradeable Services: Understanding the Scope and Impact

of Services Offshoring.” July 14 2005. PDF file. April 26 2016.

Kletzer, Lori G. "Globalization And Job Loss, From Manufacturing To Services." Economic

Perspectives 29.2 (2005): 38-46. Academic Search Premier. Web. 4 April 2016.

Kuhl, Lester. "Maintaining A Nation's Middle Class In The Global Economy: A Systems

Engineering Analysis Of The American Economic System And The Middle Class."

World Future Review (World Future Society) 4.2 (2012): 83-95. Academic Search

Premier. Web. 4 April 2016.

Schliebner, Connie T., and John J. Peregoy. "Unemployment Effects On The Family And The

Child: Interventions For Counselors." Journal Of Counseling & Development 72.4

(1994): 368-372. Academic Search Premier. Web. 22 July 2016.

“Two American Families.” Frontline. WGBH Educational Foundation. 9 July 2013. Web. 7 July

2016.