Supply chain and workforce

The National Association of Manufacturers in the U.S. released its Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey for the fourth quarter of 2021, showing that manufacturers remain mostly optimistic in their economic outlook (86.8%, down from 87.5% in Q3) but are significantly concerned with issues such as inflation, hiring and potential tax increases targeting manufacturers.

“Manufacturers are working overtime to fill more than one million open jobs, including through our nationwide ‘Creators Wanted’ workforce campaign,” said NAM President and CEO, Jay Timmons. “On top of that, we’re grappling with a supply chain crisis. Despite the challenges confronting us, manufacturers remain bullish on the future. But if Congress passes legislation with taxes that hit manufacturers harder than other industries, our entire recovery will be thrown off course. If new taxes land on our shoulders, it will undo all the progress we’ve made since the 2017 tax reform law.

“Manufacturers have kept our promise to hire more workers, raise wages and benefits and invest in our communities. Our question to Congress—the message of this survey—is, do we want to weaken our recovery by undermining manufacturers’ competitiveness? Raising taxes on manufacturers will not help us build back better. It will tear down what we’ve achieved.”

Key survey highlights include:

• Increased raw material costs (87.1%), the number-one issue for the fourth straight quarter.
• Supply chain challenges (84.5%).
• Attracting and retaining a quality workforce (82.7%).
• 87.8% of respondents said an increased tax burden on income from manufacturing activities would make it more difficult to expand their workforce, invest in new equipment or expand their facilities.
• 85.2% said that they have open positions which they cannot fill.
• 73.6% of respondents said that supply chain bottlenecks negatively impacted their company’s outlook for production, hiring and overall business activity.

The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12.5 million men and women, contributes US$ 2.52 trillion to the U.S. economy annually and has the largest economic multiplier of any major sector and accounts for 58% of private-sector research and development.

Read the full Q4 2021 Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey results at www.nam.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Manufacturers_Outlook_Survey_December_2021.pdf