August 2025

Employee attitude in manufacturing is a mix of frustration and resignation. Many online discussions center on the demanding nature of the work, including long hours, repetitive tasks, and often uncomfortable environments. While some employees are motivated by good pay, the sentiment is that management often fails to understand the realities of the shop floor. There is a general feeling that investment in the workforce, such as through training and development, is lacking, leading to a disconnect between upper management and production workers. The discussion also touches on the pressure to continuously increase productivity without corresponding investments in tooling or automation, which causes significant stress. Another fear is increased automation of manufacturing jobs across all sectors. Long before AI became a mainstream buzzword (and panic word), automation always loomed over the jobs of workers in manufacturing and continued to steadily replace human jobs. Workers always contemplate where they will go once their job is taken over by AI/automation.

The manufacturing industry is facing a period of contraction. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that the sector lost 11,000 jobs in July, following losses in both May and June. The decline is not uniform, with some sub-sectors like fabricated metal products and furniture adding jobs, while others such as machinery, motor vehicles, and semiconductors saw notable losses. This trend suggests that while there is an overall slowdown, some areas of the industry are adapting and finding new opportunities.