Manufacturing job losses are set to continue in 2010. But, as with other parts of the economy, they won’t be as bad as in the past year.
Employment in manufacturing is expected to reach 163,118 people next year, down by about 1,000 jobs from 2009, according to Chapman University.
The decline of less than 1% compares to an estimated 5.5% drop in manufacturing jobs here this year.
“Employment losses should stop soon,” Chapman economist Esmael Adibi said. “We may even see some hiring toward the end of 2010, especially in tech.”
The county’s manufacturers produce computer gear, medical devices, industrial goods, clothes and other products.
A downturn in consumer and corporate spending in the past year and a half has hit the sector hard, exacerbating a long-term trend of lost jobs as companies opt for cheaper production overseas.
About 12% of the 1.4 million workers in the county are in manufacturing. That percentage has held steady in the past year as other segments also have lost jobs.
Improving economies in Asia are likely to spur manufacturers next year. The weak dollar also should drive exports of their products (see story this page).
People around the world “want our high-quality products and can get them at a discount,” Adibi said.
Manufacturers in the defense industry—a big segment of local production—could be a mixed bag next year.
A shift in Pentagon priorities from big-ticket fighter planes and other items to computer security and unmanned vehicles could play a roll in local manufacturing employment.
Chicago-based Boeing Co., one of the largest employers here with nearly 8,500 workers, has been going after new Pentagon contracts.
Boeing doesn’t manufacture here, but, like others, its research and development jobs are counted in the category under figures from the state of California.
The company contracts with many companies that do make products here.
Other military contractors that rode the big-projects defense boom earlier this decade could see more job losses amid the shift at the Department of Defense. Others say they’re busy with multiyear contracts and won’t feel any changes soon.
Costa Mesa-based Ceradyne Inc. already has felt the brunt of lighter military demand.
The maker of specialty ceramics used for bulletproof vests worn by troops in Iraq and Afghanistan saw its sales peak two years ago.
It since has been expanding into other areas, including the solar industry.
In the past year or so, Ceradyne has laid off about a third of its workforce, or nearly 600 employees, at its bulletproof vest operations in California and Kentucky.
