by: George Hanos

Locals have been making their feelings clear about declining industries.

US manufacturing jobs continue to go to China...again. American companies are hiring, only it's overseas

Sep.13, 2011 - US Poverty level at 15.1% soars to highest level in over 50 Years! In August, Standard and Poor's downgrades U.S. credit rating from a AAA rating to AA+, citing inability of U.S. government to 'stabilize debt dynamics,' marking first debt downgrade in U.S. history. The economy is actualy getting worse as China now overtakes U.S. as top manufacturer as Weekly Jobless Claims Continue to Rise. It's no wonder really since American companies are hiring only overseas.

Corporate profits are up. Stock prices are up. So why isn't anyone hiring?

Actually, many American companies are - just maybe not in your town. They're hiring overseas, where sales are surging and the pipeline of orders is fat.

More than half of the 15,000 people that Caterpillar Inc. has hired this year were outside the U.S. UPS is also hiring at a faster clip overseas. For both companies, sales in international markets are growing at least twice as fast as domestically.

The trend helps explain why unemployment remains high in the United States, edging up to 9.8 percent last month, even though companies are performing well: All but 4 percent of the top 500 U.S. corporations reported profits this year, and the stock market is close to its highest point since the 2008 financial meltdown.

But the jobs are going elsewhere. The Economic Policy Institute, a Washington think tank, says American companies have created 1.4 million jobs overseas this year, compared with less than 1 million in the U.S. The additional 1.4 million jobs would have lowered the U.S. unemployment rate to 8.9 percent, says Robert Scott, the institute's senior international economist.

"There's a huge difference between what is good for American companies versus what is good for the American economy," says Scott.

American jobs have been moving overseas for more than two decades. In recent years, though, those jobs have become more sophisticated - think semiconductors and software, not toys and clothes.

And now many of the products being made overseas aren't coming back to the United States. Demand has grown dramatically this year in emerging markets like India, China and Brazil.

Meanwhile, consumer demand in the U.S. has been subdued. Despite a strong holiday shopping season, Americans are still spending 3 percent less than before the recession on essential items like clothing and more than 10 percent less on jewelry, furniture, electronics, and big appliances, according to MasterCard's SpendingPulse.

"Companies will go where there are fast-growing markets and big profits," says Jeffrey Sachs, globalization expert and economist at Columbia University. "What's changed is that companies today are getting top talent in emerging economies, and the U.S. has to really watch out."

With the future looking brighter overseas, companies are building there, too. Caterpillar, maker of the signature yellow bulldozers and tractors, has invested in three new plants in China in just the last two months to design and manufacture equipment. The decision is based on demand: Asia-Pacific sales soared 38 percent in the first nine months of the year, compared with 16 percent in the U.S. Caterpillar stock is up 65 percent this year.

"There is a shift in economic power that's going on and will continue. China just became the world's second-largest economy," says David Wyss, chief economist at Standard & Poor's, who notes that half of the revenue for companies in the S&P 500 in the last couple of years has come from outside the U.S.

Take the example of DuPont, which wowed the world in 1938 with nylon stockings. Known as one of the most innovative American companies of the 20th century, DuPont now sells less than a third of its products in the U.S. In the first nine months of this year, sales to the Asia-Pacific region grew 50 percent, triple the U.S. rate. Its stock is up 47 percent this year.

DuPont's work force reflects the shift in its growth: In a presentation on emerging markets, the company said its number of employees in the U.S. shrank by 9 percent between January 2005 and October 2009. In the same period, its work force grew 54 percent in the Asia-Pacific countries.

"We are a global player out to succeed in any geography where we participate in," says Thomas M. Connelly, chief innovation officer at DuPont. "We want our resources close to where our customers are, to tailor products to their needs."

While most of DuPont's research labs are still stateside, Connelly says he's impressed with the company's overseas talent. The company opened a large research facility in Hyderabad, India, in 2008.

A key factor behind this runaway international growth is the rise of the middle class in these emerging countries. By 2015, for the first time, the number of consumers in Asia's middle class will equal those in Europe and North America combined.

"All of the growth over the next 10 years is happening in Asia," says Homi Kharas, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institute and formerly the World Bank's chief economist for East Asia and the Pacific.

Coca-Cola CEO Muhtar Kent often points out that a billion consumers will enter the middle class during the coming decade, mostly in Africa, China and India. He is aggressively targeting those markets. Of Coke's 93,000 global employees, less than 13 percent were in the U.S. in 2009, down from 19 percent five years ago.

The company would not say how many new U.S. hires it has made in 2010. But its latest new investments are overseas, including $240 million for three bottling plants in Inner Mongolia as part of a three-year, $2 billion investment in China. The three plants will create 2,000 new jobs in the area. In September, Coca-Cola pledged $1 billion to the Philippines over five years.

The strategy isn't restricted to just the largest American companies. Entrepreneurs, whether in technology, retail or in manufacturing, today hire globally from the start.

Consider Vast.com, which powers the search engines of sites like Yahoo Travel and AOL Autos. The company was founded in 2005 with employees based in San Francisco and Serbia.

Harvard Business School Dean Nitin Nohria worries that the trend could be dangerous. In an article in the November issue of the Harvard Business Review, he says that if U.S. businesses keep prospering while Americans are struggling, business leaders will lose legitimacy in society. He exhorted business leaders to find a way to link growth with job creation at home.

Other economists, like Columbia University's Sachs, say multinational corporations have no choice, especially now that the quality of the global work force has improved. Sachs points out that the U.S. is falling in most global rankings for higher education while others are rising.

"We are not fulfilling the educational needs of our young people," says Sachs. "In a globalized world, there are serious consequences to that."


China has now ended America's 110 year run as the leading manufacturer of the world, the number of people filing new claims for jobless benefits jumped last week after three straight declines, another sign that hiring remains weak.

WASHINGTON -- New jobless claims in the U.S. jumped last week by the most since February, reversing a sharp fall two weeks ago. The rise is partly a result of seasonal factors but also reflects the job market's weakness. The Labor Department says new claims for unemployment insurance jumped by 37,000 to a seasonally adjusted 464,000. Analysts expected a smaller rise, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters.

First-time claims have hovered near 450,000 since the beginning of the year after falling steadily in the second half of 2009. That has raised concerns that hiring is lackluster and could slow the recovery.

The number of people continuing to claim benefits rose by 88,000 to 4.57 million


One Light Bulb at a Time
A physics teacher in high school, once told the students that while one grasshopper on the railroad tracks wouldn't slow a train very much, a billion of them would. With that thought in mind, read the following, obviously written by a good American ..

Good idea .. . . one light bulb at a time .. . . . Check this out .. I can verify this because I was in Lowes the other day for some reason and just for the heck of it I was looking at the hose attachments . They were all made in China . The next day I was in Ace Hardware and just for the heck of it I checked the hose attachments there. They were made in USA . Start looking ..

In our current economic situation, every little thing we buy or do affects someone else - even their job . So, after reading this email, I think this lady is on the right track . Let's get behind her!

My grandson likes Hershey's candy . I noticed, though, that it is marked made in Mexico now. I do not buy it any more.

My favorite toothpaste Colgate is made in Mexico ... now I have switched to Crest. You have to read the labels on everything .. This past weekend I was at Kroger. I needed 60 W light bulbs and Bounce dryer sheets.

I was in the light bulb aisle, and right next to the GE brand I normally buy was an off-brand labeled, "Everyday Value". I picked up both types of bulbs and compared the stats - they were the same except for the price .. The GE bulbs were more money than the Everyday Value brand but the thing that surprised me the most was the fact that GE was made in MEXICO and the Everyday Value brand was made in - get ready for this - the USA in a company in Cleveland , Ohio .

So throw out the myth that you cannot find products you use every day that are made right here .. So on to another aisle - Bounce Dryer Sheets . .. . yep, you guessed it, Bounce cost more money and is made in Canada . The Everyday Value brand was less money and MADE IN THE USA ! I did laundry yesterday and the dryer sheets performed just like the Bounce Free I have been using for years and at almost half the price!

My challenge to you is to start reading the labels when you shop for everyday things and see what you can find that is made in the USA - the job you save may be your own or your neighbors! If you accept the challenge, pass this on to others in your address book so we can all start buying American, one light bulb at a time! Stop buying from overseas companies!

We should have awakened a decade ago .. . .. . . . ) Let's get with the program........ help our fellow Americans keep their jobs and create more jobs here in the USA.





What does the Economic Stimulus Bill really say - Where are the Jobs for Americans? Why aren't new manufacturing jobs being created and why are existing jobs being lost? The car industry alone will now lose thousands of jobs.....

Las Vegas online retailer, www.USAB2C.com, focused exclusively on American made products, believes that its manufacturing suppliers, which produce made in USA goods, will not benefit from the Congressional Stimulus Bill as written because it does not address job creation for Americans. This Congressional Bill does not decisively link government spending to required purchases from American Small Businesses or American Large Businesses. The error of not linking the 2008 Economic Stimulus Rebates to "buy American" has not been corrected by the current bill. Did we not learn from our previous lack of targeted conditions on spending the rebate checks?

Las Vegas, NV (PRWEB) February 6, 2009 -- The new Obama administration had embraced "buy American" in the congressional passed bill yet was later changed and removed. Indeed, there were provisions that infrastructure projects such as roads and bridges contain American made steel and iron products. Vice President Biden had publicly stated that these provisions are necessary for the stimulus to work in creating jobs. Some of our trading partners have objected, calling this protectionism, but no one is protesting that the China stimulus package is protectionism. No one is protesting that prior British government spending programs were protectionist. And the list goes on throughout Europe.

George Hanos, COO of USAb2c.com, agrees: "As a small business, our company applauds this 'buy American' attitude which has been long overdue. In fact, we so strongly believed in this buy American motto that our company was established to promote American craftsmanship, preserve American jobs, and demonstrate American quality to the world via our world wide website, which is accessible by the entire Global market. We at www.USAb2c.com, which is the Internet shopping mall of America's Business to Consumers Inc., sells only American made products. Our criteria requires that the manufacturers we partner with use American labor and American materials."

We at USAb2c.com encourage all United States Senators, as they take up the stimulus bill, to clearly link stimulus provisions with American labor and American products. Our products are competitively priced and superior in quality as compared with similar items available in the world market. Clearly, there is no need nor benefit to purchasing imports with stimulus, tax payer money. Mr. Hanos goes on to add, however, that the stimulus package approved by the Democratic led Congress does not go far enough to stimulate creation of jobs in small businesses, which are the primary venues leading to job growth. "Announced layoffs by major U.S. corporations and by departments of various state agencies will not be impacted by these types of buy American provisions. We need a grass roots effort to stimulate job growth and encourage spending on products made in the USA. Government spending on the country's infrastructure, National Electric Grid, and modernizing healthcare record keeping will indeed add some jobs. However, to make it more effective, the spending should be directed towards American companies and local suppliers. What we don't want, for example, is to send medical records to India, Pakistan or the Philippines for electronic conversion and maintenance. Outsourcing should not be the outcome of the stimulus spending package."

The 2008 summer rebate program did not work to provide the needed stimulus. Statistics that are now coming to light indicate that only 15% of the funds distributed were spent on products. The rest was spent on paying down debt or deposited into savings accounts. What has not been revealed is how much of the 15% used to purchase products benefited American products and services? It is our anecdotal belief that most of the 15% went to purchase imported goods from China, India, and other Asian countries.

Mr. Hanos feels the solution is simple: "We at USAb2c.com encourage all United States Senators, as they take up the stimulus bill, to clearly link stimulus provisions with American labor and American products. Our products are competitively priced and superior in quality as compared with similar items available in the world market. Clearly, there is no need nor benefit to purchasing imports with stimulus, tax payer money."

For Media interviews with Mr. George Hanos, please call 845-627-6140.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

The intensely fishy smell of herring has been the smell of money for generations of workers in Maine who have snipped, sliced and packed the small, silvery fish into billions of cans of sardines on their way to Americans' lunch buckets and kitchen cabinets.

For the past 135 years, sardine canneries have been as much a part of Maine's small coastal villages as the thick Down East fog. It's been estimated that more than 400 canneries have come and gone along the state's long, jagged coast.

The lone survivor, the Stinson Seafood plant here in this eastern Maine shoreside town, shuts down this week after a century in operation. It is the last sardine cannery not just in Maine, but in the United States.

Lela Anderson, 78, has worked in sardine canneries since the 1940s and was among the fastest in sardine-packing contests that were held back in the day. Her packing days are over; now she's a quality-control inspector looking over the bite-sized morsels in can after can that passes by her.

"It just doesn't seem possible this is the end," Anderson lamented last week while taking a break at the plant where she's worked for 54 years. She and nearly 130 co-workers will lose their jobs.

Once considered an imported delicacy, sardines now have a humble reputation. They aren't one species of fish. Instead, sardines are any of dozens of small, oily, cold-water fish that are part of the herring family that are sold in tightly packed cans.

The first U.S. sardine cannery opened in Maine in 1875, when a New York businessman set up the Eagle Preserved Fish Co. in Eastport.

Dozens of plants soon popped up, sounding loud horns and whistles to alert local workers when a boat came in with its catch from the herring-rich ocean waters off Maine. By 1900 there were 75 canneries, where knife-wielding men, women and young children expertly sliced off heads and tails and removed innards before packing them tight into sardine tins.

These days most of the canning is automated and the fish are cut with machines, though still packed by hand. The Stinson packers are all women because they are thought to have stronger backs and better dexterity than men, according to plant manager Peter Colson.

Inside the spacious Stinson plant, dozens of workers in hairnets, aprons and gloves sort, pack and cook the herring that stream along flumes and conveyors. The fish are blanched in a 208-degree steamer for 12 minutes and later, cooked in sealed cans at about 250 degrees for 35 minutes.

Ear plugs muffle the cacophony of clanking cans, rattling conveyor belts, rumbling motors and hissing steam. A fishy smell hangs in the air. Outside, a billboard-sized sign of a fisherman in yellow oilskins holding an oversized can of Beach Cliff sardines, the plant's primary product, serves as reminder of Maine's long sardine history.

Colson has been in the sardine business for 38 years. He got his first job as a youngster at another cannery, an hour's drive away, where his father was the manager.

"This is it. We don't have any more," Colson said as he watched workers swiftly pack cans in assembly line fashion. "It's not easy seeing this go."

Production at Maine canneries has been sliding since peaking at 384 million cans in 1950. Faced with declining demand and a changing business climate, the plants went by the wayside one by one until, five years ago, the Stinson plant was the last one standing. Last year it produced 30 million cans.

Still, it came as a surprise to employees when Bumble Bee Foods LLC — which has owned the facility since 2004 — announced in February that the plant would close because of steep cuts in the amount of herring fishermen are allowed to catch in the Northeast. The New England Fishery Management Council set this year's herring quota at 91,000 metric tons — down from 180,000 tons in 2004 — because of the uncertain scientific outlook of the region's herring population.

Shortages have forced San Diego-based Bumble Bee to truck in much of the herring needed at the Maine plant from its other cannery in Blacks Harbour, New Brunswick, and from herring suppliers as far away as New Jersey. Even without the quota cuts, the plant was under pressure from shrinking consumer demand, increased foreign competition — primarily from China and Thailand — and thin margins and low prices on the retail market.

Sardines at one time were an inexpensive staple for many Americans who packed them into their lunchboxes and enjoyed a can or two — or perhaps a sardine sandwich — for lunch. The fish — usually packed in oil or in sauces such as mustard, hot sauce, tomato or green chilies — can still be had at supermarkets for a little over $1 a can, but they're not in too many lunch pails these days.

Ronnie Peabody, who runs the Maine Coast Sardine History Museum in the town of Jonesport 35 miles up the road from the Stinson plant, has a cookbook published in 1950 called "58 Ways to Serve Sardines." It includes recipes for sardine soup, sardine casserole, baked eggs and sardines, and creamed sardines and spinach.

Sardine consumption began falling decades ago, he said, after canned tuna came on the market and Americans' tastes changed. The closing of the last U.S. cannery is the end of an era, he said.

"It's like reading an obituary in the paper," he said. "It's really sad, but what can you do?"

When the last sardine can is packed on Thursday, plant workers say it'll be like a family being split up.

Many of the employees have worked together for decades. Anderson, a tiny woman with strong hands and a strong back from years of packing small fish pieces into cans, said she'll be leaving behind close friends when the plant closes.

But she won't much miss the sardines, which she doesn't eat.

"I'm not saying I hate them," she said, "I'm just saying I'm not a big eater of them."

Talks are in the works to sell the plant to another company to process lobster or other seafoods. Bumble Bee has invested more than $11 million in the plant in recent years, and there's a work force at the ready.

Bumble Bee operates one of the last two U.S. clam canneries, in Cape May, N.J., and of the last two domestic tuna canneries, in California. But the days of sardine canning in the U.S. are probably gone, said Chris Lischewski, Bumble Bee's president and CEO.

"I would never say never, but I'd say it's pretty unlikely," Lischewski said in a phone interview from California.

In Monterey, Calif., a group of self-described "sardinistas" has taken on the task of trying to get Americans to eat more sardines. It was in Monterey where sardine canneries were made famous in John Steinbeck's 1945 novel, "Cannery Row," about the misfits and outcasts on a street lined with sardine canneries.

The group is formulating a business plan in hopes of returning "the lowly sardine to the American palate," said Mike Sutton, a vice president at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, who says sardines — high in beneficial omega-3 fatty acids, low in contaminants — are among the healthiest seafoods around.

But not canned sardines. Sutton's group wants to promote fresh sardines sold at white-tablecloth restaurants or in foil packs or in prepared foods at retail stores, much the way tuna and salmon are now sold.

"We recognize the American public turns their noses up at sardines," Sutton said. "It may be a challenge and it may be insurmountable, but our motto is 'It's not your grandfather's sardine.'"