Dear Commons Community,

Amid the gridlock of the federal government and its inability to resolve economic issues namely the fiscal cliff of revenue increases and budget reductions, Apple announced yesterday that it will be bringing back some manufacturing jobs to the United States.  The New York Times reported:

“Apple’s chief executive, Timothy D. Cook, who built its efficient Asian manufacturing network, said the company would invest $100 million in producing some of its Mac computers in the United States, beyond the assembly work it already does in the United States. He provided little detail about how the money would be spent or what kinds of workers might benefit.

Apple, which long manufactured parts in the United States but stopped about a decade ago, has been under pressure to create more jobs here given its market power. It sold 237 million iPods, iPads, Macs and other devices in the year ended in September.

“I don’t think we have a responsibility to create a certain kind of job,” Mr. Cook told Bloomberg Businessweek. “But I think we do have a responsibility to create jobs.”

Some analysts are hopeful that the move by a big, innovative company like Apple could inspire a broader renaissance in American manufacturing”

Apple will be joining several other large corporations that have made similar announcements in recent months.

“Lenovo, the computer giant based in China, said it would begin making its Think-branded computers, including notebooks, desktops and some tablets, at a facility in Whitsett, N.C. The move will create 115 manufacturing jobs at the plant, the company said.

Mark Stanton, director of global supply chain communications for Lenovo, said that moving the jobs to the United States would allow Lenovo to offer faster turnaround times for its customers in North America than if the machines were coming from overseas, and that the company was not specifically creating the American jobs because of any political pressure.

“We’re certainly not unaware of the economic situation and political environment,” he said. “It’s an added benefit, but we didn’t go in with that premise. We went in with a business case.”

The globalized model of the electronics industry was shaken last year by supply chain disruptions after floods in Thailand. The auto industry faced similar challenges after the tsunami in Japan. Not coincidentally, Ford recently announced that it was adding 1,200 jobs in Michigan, and foreign-owned auto manufacturers like Honda and Volkswagen have also invested in more hiring and training in Indiana and Tennessee.”

It is encouraging to see that these large companies are willing to invest or re-invest in America.  More jobs for people will surely alleviate our other economic issues.

Tony