‘Where are the jobs?’: as US autoworkers face offshoring, Democrats vie to win votes
Summary
Autoworkers in the US Midwest face job losses due to factories moving production overseas. Democratic lawmakers are holding meetings with workers to discuss trade policies and try to regain support from workers who voted for President Trump. Manufacturing jobs in the US have declined since the 1990s, partly due to trade deals like NAFTA, which contributed to the closure of many factories.Key Facts
- Brenda Davis, a retired Ford worker, found a Buick she bought was made fully in China, highlighting concerns about offshoring.
- Morgan Hughes, who works at a GM plant in Ohio, worries about reduced work and a possible plant closure after the plant was sold.
- Democrats held town halls in Midwest states to talk with union workers about US trade policies ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
- Manufacturing jobs in the US peaked at about 19.6 million in 1979 but dropped to around 12.6 million today.
- NAFTA, signed in 1994, led to loss of over 950,000 US manufacturing jobs and many factory closures.
- President Trump has criticized NAFTA and replaced it with the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement in 2020, which did not reverse job losses.
- The Midwest has lost more than 1 million manufacturing jobs from 1990 to 2019 and remains politically important.
- Trump’s tariffs have caused order declines at some plants, worsening the situation for workers like Morgan Hughes.
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