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Wisconsin recently became the nation’s number one state for manufacturing, but it might be forgiven for not feeling very celebratory because it assumed the throne somewhat by default.
According to federal data, 15.6 percent of the state’s workers are employed in manufacturing—just a shade over the 15.4 percent rate for Indiana, the former champion. Wisconsin grabbed the top spot despite shedding more than 61,000 manufacturing jobs—almost 13 percent of all jobs in the sector—from the most recent May-to-May period.
That job loss cut manufacturing’s share of jobs down from 17 percent, but demonstrates the job devastation in the Hoosier state, where manufacturing once enjoyed a rate of 17.8 percent.
Ron Wirtz is a Minneapolis Fed regional outreach director. Ron tracks current business conditions, with a focus on employment and wages, construction, real estate, consumer spending, and tourism. In this role, he networks with businesses in the Bank’s six-state region and gives frequent speeches on economic conditions. Follow him on Twitter @RonWirtz.
