Manufacturing Adds 7,000 Jobs in May

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The Department of Labor reported this morning that America's manufacturing sector added 7,000 jobs in May. Manufacturing contributed only 2.5 percent of private sector job gains in May.

The #AAMeter, which tracks President Obama's promise to create 1 million new manufacturing jobs in his second term, increased to +389,000 jobs, after revisions to March’s data.

Said Alliance for American Manufacturing President Scott Paul :

“While most of the private sector soared in May, manufacturing posted a weak gain of 7,000 new jobs. I’m glad the number is positive, but it’s clear the strong dollar and a surge in manufacturing imports over the last few months are dampening manufacturing job growth. That makes combatting unfair trade practices and currency manipulation even more important. Without robust manufacturing job growth, it will be extremely difficult to rebuild the middle class.”

The #AAMeter: During his re-election campaign, President Obama set a goal of creating 1 million new manufacturing jobs in his second term. The Alliance for American Manufacturing continues to track the president's progress via our monthly manufacturing jobs tracker, the #AAMeter, based on monthly jobs data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.