A resolution soon to be introduced in the state Senate would designate Oct. 2 as Manufacturing Day.
Manufacturing Day is held annually throughout the United States on the first Friday of October with events during the month. A work force development movement, manufacturers and their partners invite students, educators, parents and community members to demonstrate what modern manufacturing is like. Events include classroom visits, career conversations, hands-on activities, plant tours and community events.
State Sens. Devlin Robinson (R-Allegheny) and Christine Tartaglione (D-Philadelphia) sent a memo to Senate members on Monday, inviting colleagues to celebrate and support manufacturers and manufacturing workers statewide.
In Pennsylvania, the manufacturing sector employs more than 550,000 people with average wages of more than $86,000 annually and with more than 90 percent of workers receiving health care benefits from their employers. Pennsylvania’s manufacturers include the advanced manufacturing, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, fabricated metals and machinery, food and beverage, primary metals, robotics and transportation equipment and defense sectors.
By 2036, 3.8 million new manufacturing workers will be needed nationwide.
“The manufacturing sector needs creators and innovators to thrive into the future,” the senators said. “With thousands of new jobs emerging across the commonwealth in the next decade, there’s never been a better time for young people to explore a career in modern manufacturing.”