Three-Pronged Approach To Restart Manufacturing In The Next Normal

The COVID-19 pandemic could inflict lasting harm on employment in US manufacturing—a critical sector for the US economy. My colleagues and I estimate that at least 3.5 million—and potentially more than 5 million—US manufacturing jobs are vulnerable because of the current crisis. That means that as much as 42% of the 12 million jobs in the sector could be exposed, putting millions of workers at risk of permanent layoffs, furloughs, or significant reductions in hours and pay. This estimate is based on an assessment of more than 800 occupations, which asked how essential each occupation’s specific work functions are for the economy to function, and how much physical proximity they require.

The damage will not be distributed equally. Manufacturing ranks just behind two sectors—retail, as well as accommodation and food services—as having the highest number of vulnerable jobs in the short term. Collectively, job losses across all sectors would disproportionately affect lower paid, less educated, nonwhite, and younger workers. For example, employees without a bachelor’s degree are twice as likely as other workers to be in a vulnerable job. But across the entire US economy, the most affected demographic group is that of Hispanic workers, 45% of whom are in vulnerable jobs—accounting for 11.6 million vulnerable jobs—and black workers, with 7 million vulnerable jobs, making up 39% of the black labor force.

To avoid making America’s existing social and economic gaps even wider, it will be critical to get the restart of the US economy right. As states begin a phased reopening, more and more manufacturing plants will restart their operations. However, as companies plan for the safe return of their employees, work itself will be different.

The bottom line: society will do well to consider a redoubling of efforts to focus on helping those most affected adapt to the next normal, as well as on saving jobs. While some manufacturing plants have maintained—or even increased—their operations during the crisis to produce essential goods such, such as personal protective equipment (PPE) or food supplies, others will reopen from a standing start, bringing employees onsite for the first time in several months. To reopen plants safely and rebuild a sector that represents 11% of US economic growth and 8% of employment, manufacturing plants could focus their efforts in three key areas.

Protect the workforce. The table-stakes moves are clear. Workers will need to be supplied with sufficient PPE, physical distancing enabled through work spaces that are 6 feet apart, with staggered shifts so employees work with fewer colleagues, and enhanced cleaning routines. In compliance with applicable laws and regulations, many manufacturing plants may also implement temperature-screening stations, potentially with contact tracing and isolation for confirmed COVID-19 cases.

Resources and support for employees’ mental health could be particularly important—many workers may be facing a myriad of concerns about the health and job security of themselves and their families. Communication that is consistent and transparent will be key. Leaders typically over-estimate how much they are effectively communicating by three-fold. In stress-inducing times like these, having a calming and frequent communication strategy from a reliable, central source of truth will be especially helpful.

Manage risks to ensure business continuity. Building resilience across the company and across the full supply chain to be able to flex up and down to a greater degree will be more of a focus going forward. The dramatic shifts in supply and demand that organizations have seen—much higher demand for toilet paper and flour, for example, and dramatically lower demand for other goods like cars—will test and help improve scenario planning. Business continuity will involve weighing a broader and more complex set of risks than many companies have traditionally considered. Manufacturing supply chains are often global in nature, and COVID-19 has vividly shown how interconnected every business is—both nationally and internationally—to its suppliers. As companies think about risk management going forward, there may be a concerted effort to narrow the number of dependencies on other companies, and rethink how they assess global risk against future disruptions, such as travel constraints, that have already been seen.

Drive productivity at a distance. Performance management and coaching will entail a reimagining of where and how people work. For example, overseeing and monitoring production lines, either digitally or through a video monitoring system, will be safer than being physically next to another worker on the production line—at least in the near-term. Engaging employees in how to continuously improve and solve problems in a remote environment will require creativity, but is absolutely possible. Indeed it’s a trend that has been underway for several years as leading manufacturers have adopted industrial IoT technologies, such as sensors and automatic monitoring, and have empowered their employees by placing the technology under their control.

These elements, when taken together, will help manufacturing plants reopen safely and effectively, through a combination of employee care and strategic future planning. They will also help avoid large COVID-19 outbreaks that have been increasingly challenging at some US food production plants, for example.

This moment is a critical juncture for manufacturing in the US. With more than 5 million of 12 million US. manufacturing jobs potentially vulnerable to COVID-19, how the manufacturing industry emerges from this crisis will be a key driver of our collective economic recovery.

Speak Your Mind

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Get in Touch

350FansLike
100FollowersFollow
281FollowersFollow
150FollowersFollow

Recommend for You

Oh hi there 👋
It’s nice to meet you.

Subscribe and receive our weekly newsletter packed with awesome articles that really matters to you!

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

You might also like

How To Run A Successful Virtual Meeting

Getty Video meetings are now the new normal,...

WWE WrestleMania 36 Results: The 5 Biggest Takeaways From...

WWE WrestleMania 36 taught us plenty about the future...

Council Post: Five Tips For Brands Thinking Of Breaking...

Anita is the General Manager of Digital Crew, an agency specializing in Chinese, English, Japanese...

WWE SmackDown Results: Winners, News And Notes On September...

Bayley and Sasha Banks split last week on SmackDown....