[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 1 (Wednesday, January 4, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E4-E5]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                         TRADE AND JOB SECURITY

                                 ______


                          HON. LEE H. HAMILTON

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, January 4, 1995

  Mr. HAMILTON. Mr. Speaker, I would like to insert my Washington 
Report for Wednesday, December 21, 1994 into the Congressional Record.
                         Trade and Job Security

       America's middle-class workers are increasingly frustrated 
     and concerned about their economic future. They are working 
     harder and longer than ever but their income is just not 
     growing. Many are concerned about their job security and 
     worry that their job could be the next to be eliminated. One 
     third of those recently polled said they are worse off than 
     they expected to be at this age, and close to two thirds said 
     they do not expect their children to do as well as they have 
     done. Too many individuals believe the American dream is 
     simply beyond their reach.
       It used to be that if workers were conscientious and 
     performed their jobs well they could expect to advance and 
     prosper in the years ahead. Today, however, many workers--
     both blue collar and white collar--face an uncertain future. 
     They may encounter foreign competition, corporate downsizing, 
     automation, or the increased use of computers. In a recent 
     survey, three out of four employers said that their own 
     employees fear losing their jobs. As the Secretary of Labor 
     puts it, the middle class has become the anxious class.


                            expanding trade

       One of their biggest concerns is foreign competition 
     created by the dynamic global marketplace. Congress and all 
     recent Presidents have taken steps to expand U.S. trade 
     opportunities. Since the late 1970s, several bilateral and 
     multilateral agreements have been approved, including the 
     Tokyo Round expansion of the General Agreement on Tariffs and 
     Trade, the U.S.-Canada Free Trade Agreement, the North 
     America Free Trade Agreement, and the new GATT agreements 
     that create, among other things, the World Trade 
     Organization. Next might be free trade agreements with Chile 
     and other countries in the Western Hemisphere.
       On balance, I think expanded trade is a plus for American 
     workers. Trade now accounts for a large share of U.S. 
     economic growth, and it means expanded sales for U.S. 
     businesses. The recently approved expansion of GATT, for 
     example, will provide stable rules for trade and remove 
     restrictions that limit sales of our goods and services 
     abroad. The Council of Economic Advisors estimates that GATT 
     will boost U.S. economic output $100-200 billion within ten 
     years.
       At the same time I recognize that expanded trade is a 
     threat to some U.S. workers. Trade may generate more U.S. 
     jobs than it eliminates, but it does put some Americans out 
     of work. While the President talks about the millions of good 
     paying jobs created by free trade, many middle-class workers 
     believe the benefits of trade go to a few talented, well-
     educated professionals and executives while they fall behind.


                              steps needed

       The remedy is not to simply close our markets to trade. We 
     are one of the most competitive countries in the world and 
     many U.S. jobs are already tied to exports and trade. But we 
     do need to take several steps to improve our ability to deal 
     with this changing environment and reduce job insecurity for 
     many Americans.
       [[Page E5]] First, we must continue to reduce the federal 
     budget deficit. Keeping the deficit down means less borrowing 
     by the government, thus freeing up funds at lower interest 
     rates for businesses to invest. That should boost the economy 
     and spur job creation. We need to make sure that the U.S. 
     economy continues to generate more jobs than are lost to 
     foreign competition.
       Second, we must reassess the more than 150 federal job 
     training and retraining programs to see which ones work and 
     which ones don't. Some should be expanded, others simply 
     dropped. We should accelerate our efforts to create 
     ``reemployment centers'' and put more of the resources into 
     the hands of ordinary Americans rather than government 
     agencies, so people can get the skills they need in a way 
     that makes sense for them. We need a better safety net for 
     individuals and communities experiencing the downside of open 
     trade.
       Third, we must encourage companies to spend more of their 
     profits to continually upgrade the skills of their workers 
     and to retrain workers whose jobs have been lost through 
     trade or technology. U.S. firms generally invest less in 
     worker training than firms abroad, and
      what they do invest is more heavily concentrated on 
     professional and managerial workers. Skilled workers and 
     important assets, and businesses need to invest more in 
     their development.
       Fourth, federal policies should help important industries 
     threatened by foreign competition. Federal research and 
     development grants, tax policy, and deregulation all can help 
     strengthen important U.S. industries and make them more 
     competitive in the global market. We also need to expand the 
     federal manufacturing extension program, which helps small 
     companies adopt the latest production techniques.
       Fifth, we must not allow other countries to use the open 
     markets provided by the trade agreements to unfairly harm our 
     industries. We must vigorously prosecute dumping and other 
     unfair trade practices. If a surge of imports is displacing 
     our workers, GATT allows us to take steps to limit those 
     imports. At the same time, we must vigorously pursue our 
     rights in cases where foreign practices restrict our exports. 
     We must make sure that trade agreements mean a level playing 
     field that promotes U.S. exports.
       Finally, we must have accurate data about the impact of 
     more open trade on U.S. jobs. Many economists believe that 
     government trade statistics underestimate U.S. exports by 
     some 10%, for a variety of technical reasons. If so, 
     estimates of jobs created by exports are also underestimated. 
     We also need better data on identifying industries hurt by 
     imports.


                               conclusion

       Overall, we must pursue policies which promote economic 
     growth, help strengthen U.S. companies, continually upgrade 
     the skills of our workers, and find new markets for our 
     products abroad. Our number one priority is jobs--good and 
     secure jobs. Our challenge is to promote broad participation 
     by our workforce in this changing environment so that anxious 
     workers can become assured, productive, capable Americans. 
     Improving Americans' job security must be among our highest 
     priorities in the upcoming session of Congress.
     

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