The Illinois Manufacturers’ Association says the state needs to focus on high tech training for employees in that field.
Manufacturing jobs have been declining. Illinois officials say technological innovations have made many employees obsolete. The Association’s Greg Durham says that’s only partially true. He says taxes in the state have forced out just as many jobs. Durham says to lure companies to the state, employees need computer training.
“The jobs of the future in manufacturing need higher skills, need technical skills, etc, that they don’t have necessarily now. So, things are evolving, they’re changing, that’s not always a bad thing. We think manufacturing in Illinois is going to thrive for a long time,” he says.
Durham says state legislators are working closely with the industry to bring in more manufacturing companies.
A recent study from Northern Illinois University says the state has lost more than 220,000 high-paying manufacturing jobs since 1990.