“Having more manufacturing companies involved with local schools will benefit the state” says a new summary by Florida TaxWatch.
Groups like FloridaMakes and Florida TaxWatch have been ramping up the effort to make manufacturing a top issue in the state.
According to the report, the number of Florida-based manufacturers recently passed the 25,000 threshold, making Florida a manufacturing state. These manufacturers support more than 426,000 high-wage jobs, employing about 4.4 percent of the state’s workforce, with average salaries in excess of $74,575. In 2022, Florida ranked 12th among states for manufacturing gross domestic product (GDP), but ranked 31st in terms of productivity, or gross revenue per employee, with an average of $178,367 in economic output per employee – roughly $40,000 below the U.S. average of $218,271 per employee.
Florida TaxWatch says that each year Florida operates below the U.S. average, which negatively impacts the state economy by approximately $16.3 billion. However, this can be reduced by upskilling the manufacturing workforce, increasing the value of production, and accelerating the use of technology.
Regarding the workforce, from September 2013 to September 2023, the number of manufacturing jobs in Florida increased from approximately 326,300 to 422,800, an average of 9,600 new jobs yearly. However, to rank among the top five manufacturing states by 2030, Florida must create an average of 20,000 jobs each year.
TaxWatch points out areas that will establish Florida as a manufacturing state are:
- Step up marketing and messaging efforts among manufacturers.
- Utilize more nontraditional methods of building a robust and sustainable talent pipeline, such as apprenticeships, internships, and “boot camps.”
- Get local manufacturing companies involved in schools.
- Develop resilient and sustainable supply chains that are interactive and dynamic with networks of people, processes, and technologies.
- Accelerate the adoption and implementation of Industry 4.0 technologies.
Author
