Exploring the Redistribution of Manufacturing Employment Among the American States in the Face of Overall Declines in Employment

Abstract

Over the period 2001-2011 national employment in all 21 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) industries has trended downward. The change in employment appears to be correlated with the regional redistribution of employment. This study explores changes in manufacturing employment between 2001 and 2012 as influenced by initial state-specific socioeconomic characteristics, state policy, market access, and state- and industry-specific conditions. The analysis is conducted for all 21 NAICS manufacturing industries to observe patterns and deduce information about factors that most consistently and frequently influence manufacturing employment in these industries across the United States.