WCPO Cincinnati is reporting on new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that suggests that food service jobs now outpace manufacturing jobs in Cincinnati – a city once known for its vibrant factory culture.
Officially, says the data, “leisure and hospitality” jobs surpassed industrial ones in Cincinnati in April, a trend that’s been on the rise since 2007. Further, the report says this trend could be surfacing nationwide as soon as 2020. Experts say that outsourcing and robotics have contributed to the decline of Cincinnati’s manufacturing sector, where job opportunities have been increasing since the 2008 recession, just not fast enough to make up for the jobs that were lost.
Meanwhile, gigs like bartending and waiting tables offer the appeal of daily paychecks, as many workers take home cash at the end of every shift. But there is a major downside according to the story – while the average manufacturing worker gets 40 hours per week with overtime opportunity, foodservice industry workers often put in 25 hours per week, and take home around $10 less per hour.
Despite this hiccup, it doesn’t appear Ohio is completely down and out when it comes to manufacturing. Rumors are swirling that the state is hoping to land the joint factory that’s being currently proposed by Toyota and Mazda as part of their new partnership to produce electric cars.
While Ohio is playing a bit coy as to whether it’s actively courting the plant project, Jobs Ohio provided Cincinnati.com with a laundry list of reasons why it was a good idea to locate in the southwestern part of the state – including Toyota’s network of factories and engineering firms in neighboring Indiana, Kentucky, and Michigan.
The Toyota-Mazda EV project is said to come with 4,000 jobs, and the companies hope to be operational by 2021.