Posted on 06/09/2005 11:17:22 AM PDT by Willie Green
From the linked article:
Hourly wage rate in the furniture and fixtures industry averaged $12.98 compared to $15.74 for manufacturing as a whole in 2003.
Lucky = $6.50 per hour?
The reason for this difference must be found in the fact that the output per worker (labor productivity) in the furniture sector falls short of that among all manufacturers by over 60%.
Greater productivity does lead to increased wages.
It seems that the furniture industry lends itself less to labor-saving technologies than other industries. Between 1982 and 2002, the level of furniture employment grew by 7.7% while total manufacturing employment fell by 9.0%.
Non-production worker employment in the manufacture of furniture has grown faster than that of production workers. The long-term increase reflects both the introduction of labor-saving technology and the increasingly complex business environment (which has increased the relative need for marketing and administrative workers to move furniture products from the plant to the final consumer).
It would be interesting to know whether or not marketing and administrative workers earn more than an average of $12.98 per hour.
Contrary to overall manufacturing, furniture producers’ unit labor costs almost doubled. As unit labor costs grew considerably faster than the prices received by furniture producers (manufacturers’ selling prices) during the past 20 years, the industry’s ability to sustain a high level of profitability has been curtailed.
Taxpayer funded "gimme".
Some specialty textiles like KR and Glenn Raven survive but in general textiles in this country are pretty much dead.
perhaps if the furniture makers had invested in automation to improve productivity, it might have happened. instead, they invested in a plant in china.
ita already set in stone - furniture manufacturing is going to china - its gone, its just a matter of time.
I've been buying some all-wood unfinished pieces and staining and assembling them myself.
I work for the Research & Design Dept. of La-Z-Boy and let me tell you it does not take 1500 to make a couch they usually get 5 times the amount back so more like 300 in all the costs and your average sewer will run about 140% at $8.81 an hour so close to 12$ while your upholster will make more like 175-200% at a base rate of $9+...so go figure....and by the way La-Z-Boy laid off 90+ employees in the Dayton, Tn plant this past week and plans 90+ more layoffs soon...its starting to go downhill fast...they want it all in China or atleast the sewing b/c that puts more money in their pocket...
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