AUBURN - John Currier said business at his company, Currier Plastics, is solid enough that he plans to add 25 employees at the injection and blow-molding plant by the end of the year.
Linda Ryan, a 13-year employee at Schott-Fostec, places corning bundles on the cure light line tables on the factory's assembly floor. Reid Silverman / The Citizen
"Most of our customers are pretty busy these next two months," said Currier, who employs 110 people at the Columbus Street plant. "I see a lot of work."
Currier Plastics would appear to be bucking a trend - adding manufacturing jobs at a time when that sector is shrinking throughout the United States. But in Cayuga County, Currier is far from an anomaly.
Cayuga County added about 100 manufacturing jobs from January 2004 and January 2005, according to state Department of Labor data released earlier this month. In a region where nearby Onondaga and Oswego counties have seen continuing manufacturing job losses, Cayuga County, mostly through slow growth at small-to-medium-size companies like Currier's, has experienced turnaround.
"It's a very positive sign," said Karen Knapik-Scalzo, an assistant economist for the state Department of Labor's regional office in Syracuse. "It appears to be broad-based because it's not coming from just one company. We're seeing job additions at companies with between 10 and 99 employees, and also at firms with between 100 and 499 employees."
Until March, Cayuga County's labor data had been included in the Syracuse Metropolitan Area, so the job increase here wasn't apparent.
Using the old data, the four-county region lost 1,700 manufacturing jobs in 2004. Taking Cayuga County out of the mix indicates those losses likely came from companies in Madison, Onondaga and Oswego.
That's not to say there weren't shifts here, as well, with some companies making cuts while others added positions. But overall, Cayuga County is ahead of the curve when it comes to manufacturing jobs in upstate New York, Knapik-Scalzo said.
"And the county's unemployment rate, at 5.5 percent, is below the rest of the state and the nation," she said. "There are more people in the labor force in Cayuga County than there was a year ago."
The labor department estimated there were 28,000 people in the county's workforce by the end of 2004, compared to 25,900 at the beginning of that year, an increase of 2.3 percent. Knapik-Scalzo called the additional jobs "a healthy growth rate."
There were 3,600 people working in manufacturing in December, compared to 3,400 at the start of 2004, a 2.9 percent increase.
That's important, considering that manufacturing jobs pay well, Knapik-Scalzo said. Weekly salaries for manufacturing in Cayuga County, according to her statistics, come in at $740.
Tom Herbert, owner of Bo-Mer Plastics on Pulaski Street in Auburn, wouldn't discuss salaries, but said he was looking for two more workers for his company.
"We could use a couple more people," said Herbert, whose plant now employs 31. "Things are staying OK. We are not going gangbusters, but we're doing well. I'm somewhat cautious, but we're seeing some growth."
John Vastino, plant manager at McQuay International in Auburn, said the Technology Park Boulevard company has recently added 20 employees and is in the process of putting six more in place, bringing the workforce to 452.
"We're just finishing up the hiring process," Vastino said.
This month has been one of the busiest Marches the heating and air conditioning plant has experienced, with orders for many geothermal products at high levels.
"I think it's because of our improved water source heat pump," Vastino said. "Actually, (Auburn) has been a great sales rep for us. We've shown a lot of people the basement of city hall."
Last year, the city put in a geothermal system to heat and cool the South Street building. McQuay manufactured the components.
Like McQuay, Currier will add its employees a few at a time as job orders increase, Currier said.
David Miller, Cayuga County's director of planning and economic development, said with the exception of Nellson Nutraceutical closing its Ira plant, most of the county's manufacturers are stable.
Nellson will shift its operations to a plant in California by the end of the month, displacing 108 workers. The labor department and local employment resources have been put in place to offer assistance.
"But when you think about Nucor, TRW, Owens-Brockway, McQuay, they seem to be very strong and doing well," Miller said. "Nellson is the only company I can recall closing. And some small firms have come here. There have been tool and die companies that have added employees. Leonardi Manufacturing in Weedsport got a grant for new equipment that added some jobs."
He said a higher percentage of Cayuga County's residents work in manufacturing than the state average. The 2000 census data, he said, shows that 18.6 percent of Cayuga County's population worked in the manufacturing sector, compared to 10 percent of the state's and 14 percent of the nation.
"Manufacturing pays well, so you want to see a lot of people working in those fields," he said.
Miller cited challenges to New York manufacturers, including the costs of energy and labor, that could prohibit growth even in companies that are running in the black.
Lauren Lake, logistics manager for Schott-Fostec, an Auburn fiber optics company on Columbus Street, said her company has lost some office positions at the plant as efficiencies have been put into place. There are 87 people working in the manufacturing plant now, but the company's goal is to have 93 by Sept. 30, the end of its fiscal year.
David Smith, head of Nucor Steel in Auburn, said his company has cut some positions as it has become more efficient. There have not been lay-offs, but positions at the plant, which now employs 290, have been eliminated as employees leave or retire.
Nucor recently invested in a new $11 million furnace and plant addition, but did not add jobs, Smith said.
"We're stable," Smith said. "We may drop a few here, but we have not cut anybody loose."
He said politicians like to tout job creation in high-paying fields, but that's not always realistic.
"Our goal is to produce more steel, not adding more people," he said.
Staff writer Louise Hoffman Broach can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 238 or louise.hoffman@lee.net
Currier Plastics would appear to be bucking a trend - adding manufacturing jobs at a time when that sector is shrinking throughout the United States. But in Cayuga County, Currier is far from an anomaly.
Cayuga County added about 100 manufacturing jobs from January 2004 and January 2005, according to state Department of Labor data released earlier this month. In a region where nearby Onondaga and Oswego counties have seen continuing manufacturing job losses, Cayuga County, mostly through slow growth at small-to-medium-size companies like Currier's, has experienced turnaround.
"It's a very positive sign," said Karen Knapik-Scalzo, an assistant economist for the state Department of Labor's regional office in Syracuse. "It appears to be broad-based because it's not coming from just one company. We're seeing job additions at companies with between 10 and 99 employees, and also at firms with between 100 and 499 employees."
Until March, Cayuga County's labor data had been included in the Syracuse Metropolitan Area, so the job increase here wasn't apparent.
Using the old data, the four-county region lost 1,700 manufacturing jobs in 2004. Taking Cayuga County out of the mix indicates those losses likely came from companies in Madison, Onondaga and Oswego.
That's not to say there weren't shifts here, as well, with some companies making cuts while others added positions. But overall, Cayuga County is ahead of the curve when it comes to manufacturing jobs in upstate New York, Knapik-Scalzo said.
"And the county's unemployment rate, at 5.5 percent, is below the rest of the state and the nation," she said. "There are more people in the labor force in Cayuga County than there was a year ago."
The labor department estimated there were 28,000 people in the county's workforce by the end of 2004, compared to 25,900 at the beginning of that year, an increase of 2.3 percent. Knapik-Scalzo called the additional jobs "a healthy growth rate."
There were 3,600 people working in manufacturing in December, compared to 3,400 at the start of 2004, a 2.9 percent increase.
That's important, considering that manufacturing jobs pay well, Knapik-Scalzo said. Weekly salaries for manufacturing in Cayuga County, according to her statistics, come in at $740.
Tom Herbert, owner of Bo-Mer Plastics on Pulaski Street in Auburn, wouldn't discuss salaries, but said he was looking for two more workers for his company.
"We could use a couple more people," said Herbert, whose plant now employs 31. "Things are staying OK. We are not going gangbusters, but we're doing well. I'm somewhat cautious, but we're seeing some growth."
John Vastino, plant manager at McQuay International in Auburn, said the Technology Park Boulevard company has recently added 20 employees and is in the process of putting six more in place, bringing the workforce to 452.
"We're just finishing up the hiring process," Vastino said.
This month has been one of the busiest Marches the heating and air conditioning plant has experienced, with orders for many geothermal products at high levels.
"I think it's because of our improved water source heat pump," Vastino said. "Actually, (Auburn) has been a great sales rep for us. We've shown a lot of people the basement of city hall."
Last year, the city put in a geothermal system to heat and cool the South Street building. McQuay manufactured the components.
Like McQuay, Currier will add its employees a few at a time as job orders increase, Currier said.
David Miller, Cayuga County's director of planning and economic development, said with the exception of Nellson Nutraceutical closing its Ira plant, most of the county's manufacturers are stable.
Nellson will shift its operations to a plant in California by the end of the month, displacing 108 workers. The labor department and local employment resources have been put in place to offer assistance.
"But when you think about Nucor, TRW, Owens-Brockway, McQuay, they seem to be very strong and doing well," Miller said. "Nellson is the only company I can recall closing. And some small firms have come here. There have been tool and die companies that have added employees. Leonardi Manufacturing in Weedsport got a grant for new equipment that added some jobs."
He said a higher percentage of Cayuga County's residents work in manufacturing than the state average. The 2000 census data, he said, shows that 18.6 percent of Cayuga County's population worked in the manufacturing sector, compared to 10 percent of the state's and 14 percent of the nation.
"Manufacturing pays well, so you want to see a lot of people working in those fields," he said.
Miller cited challenges to New York manufacturers, including the costs of energy and labor, that could prohibit growth even in companies that are running in the black.
Lauren Lake, logistics manager for Schott-Fostec, an Auburn fiber optics company on Columbus Street, said her company has lost some office positions at the plant as efficiencies have been put into place. There are 87 people working in the manufacturing plant now, but the company's goal is to have 93 by Sept. 30, the end of its fiscal year.
David Smith, head of Nucor Steel in Auburn, said his company has cut some positions as it has become more efficient. There have not been lay-offs, but positions at the plant, which now employs 290, have been eliminated as employees leave or retire.
Nucor recently invested in a new $11 million furnace and plant addition, but did not add jobs, Smith said.
"We're stable," Smith said. "We may drop a few here, but we have not cut anybody loose."
He said politicians like to tout job creation in high-paying fields, but that's not always realistic.
"Our goal is to produce more steel, not adding more people," he said.
Staff writer Louise Hoffman Broach can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 238 or louise.hoffman@lee.net
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