2 of 3 Carolinas textile jobs may go in 3 years, study says

Unrestricted trade with China could cause the Carolinas to lose two of every three remaining textile jobs in the next three years, according to a study released Wednesday by the U.S. industry's leading trade group.

The American Textile Manufacturers Institute projects North Carolina will lose 85,000 textile and apparel jobs between 2004 and 2006 -- more than any other state. South Carolina would be the third-hardest hit, with 42,000 job losses, according to the report.

The study is part of a campaign by ATMI and other textile trade groups to persuade the U.S. government to re-impose quotas on certain categories of textile and apparel from China. Government limits on imports of some textile products were lifted last year, and the remaining textile quotas are scheduled to be eliminated in 2005, although tariffs will remain.

By examining the presence of Chinese-made textile products in Japan and Australia, which have no quotas, ATMI forecasts that China will control 71 percent of the U.S. textile and apparel import market by 2006, up from 20 percent this year.

That will cause an estimated 630,000 layoffs nationally in an industry that employs about 1 million, according to the report. Other countries, including those in Latin America and Africa, will also see their textile industries shrivel as China claims a growing share, ATMI said.

In an interview last week with China Daily, Chinese officials said the U.S. textile industry's efforts to limit shipments of Chinese textiles are "groundless" and an abuse of international trading rules.

Between 1998 and 2002, textile and apparel imports to the United States increased 47 percent, to 38.3 billion square meters. During that time, Chinese imports nearly tripled, to 5 billion square meters.

Erik Autor, vice president of the National Retail Federation, said he thinks trading patterns will continue to shift overseas.

"Irrespective of what might happen on quotas or even with respect to China, job losses in the apparel industry in the United States will continue, mainly because it just isn't economic to make commodity apparel in the United States," he said.

You know what, I seem to remember a saying in the Bible, I think Jesus said it, "Forgive them Father, they do not understand," as he was being crucified. Well, I'm just starting to study the Bible so please be easy on me. B-) I feel the same with the free-traders here who just can't or won't see what free-trade is doing to us.

Well, the bad thing is that many Republicans do not see the crux of the issue that our jobs are leaving us. People who manufactured things, well yeah, some of it is mind numbing work, but in today's world, it is not, you still have to know some technical skills to run a lot of computerized machinery. Still, what do you do with the people out of work, not every Joe and Jane can program computers or track stocks, (cough), but even if that is the case, we are outsourcing those jobs too, so we are back at Square 1. I've seen the steel mills here in Pittsburgh, I remember them going full blast in the early 1970's before the big crunch. A lot of people were thrown out of work, good people.

I think the Republican Party is in a bad position although they can turn it into a winner if they address this issue but it seems like they won't. If they won't the Democrats and/or a third party will, and the Republicans will lose. I don't want to see that, but I'm afraid they are "cutting their noses off to spite their face." All this does is reinforce the idea that the Republicans are the "rich man's party." We already have handed enough ammo to our enemies, we do not need this, yet there are people out there who fail to see that, worship the false Mammon of the dollar sign where it is "to all, and be all," and are willing to crucify the gains we made on a "Cross of Gold." (With apologies to William Jennings Bryant).

What we see here is the cry of "the I've got mine" club. If it doesn't affect them, who cares? It's like we got a fire out of control on 1st Street but they live on 2nd or 3rd Street so they don't care, but it will spread and consume them along with us. Yeah, they have jobs now, but when people lose their jobs en masse, it will affect them because the economy would lose the money these people would have put into it and the shock wave will reach them eventually. As my father told me, manufacturing built this country and is needed today and "you cannot do business with people with no money."

We are losing this nation ethically, morally, economically, you name it but there are people who cannot see it but we must remain on course to flight it, otherwise the only option is to die. We cannot lose.

Yor are absolutely right. Yes our Lord did say that, we here in this country are being sold out, those selling us out, are very aware or what they are doing. Those that cann't see this are very deluded. My guess, for some people, it may be age, they don't know how it was 30-40 years ago and the school system has been successfully used as indoctrnation centers for the children into socialism.

I think you're right. Our opponent, D'Anconia55 stated he was in his mid 30's. Well, I'll be 37 tomorrow so I think he and I are around the same age, maybe I have a year or to on him at best. I guess growing up and living in Pittsburgh and seeing what happened to steel and industry opened up my eyes. Capitalism and money are not bad things at all, the free market is good for things like "who makes the best car, TV, radio, and so on." I think where some get confused is that they believe it is the end all, be all for everything and it is not. It is like a double edged sword, it can come back and hit you. as we are seeing with the decline of jobs, outsourcing to other countries, and so forth which is endangering to national security and well being. Some people don't see that and won't. Hopefully they will come around one day, but I'm glad there is a lot of us who see what is truly happening.

If the bottom ever falls out, in a way, a depression can be a good thing, it would bring people back to their roots and what is important. One thing that worries me though is the mentality is not like it was in the 1930's, would people be humbled or just "go anarchy" and/or be drawn into more government programs? Also when you add into the mix where a lot of our industry has disappeared, how can you have a recovery with no plants? So again, we have a double edge sword so we must do what we can to avoid this.

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