By MARK R. MADLER Staff Reporter Los Angeles County will see a continued decline in manufacturing jobs this year, the chief economist for the county’s economic development corporation said. Jack Kyser told a group at a seminar hosted by the Verdugo Workforce Investment Board that the region can take steps to keep the manufacturing sector viable. Manufacturers should concentrate on the quality of products made here, the innovation of the products, the speed to which they are brought to market, and keeping industrial-zoned land from falling into the hands of retail and housing developers. “I’d love to find land and develop a large industrial park,” Kyser said. “There are some shopping centers that are struggling.” Southern California remains the nation’s top manufacturing area, according to a study released in March by the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. With 76,300 jobs, the Valley lags behind the southeast area of the county and the South Bay, according to the “Manufacturing in Southern California” study. The east Valley had 1,636 manufacturing establishments providing 44,700 jobs with a payroll of $513 million in the second quarter of 2006, according to the LAEDC study. The West Valley by comparison had 1,055 manufacturing establishments providing 31,600 jobs with a payroll of $452 million, the study said. Overall, the Valley lost 21,100 manufacturing jobs between 2001 and the second quarter of 2006. The lack of visibility and the perception it is a dirty industry are among the problems plaguing manufacturing, Kyser said. Tax credits for manufacturers should be restored by state lawmakers and Los Angeles needs to be more business friendly, Kyser added. The city can take steps to court manufacturers by making available information they need about doing business and working faster to resolve permitting issues, Kyser said. “For a business if you have delays that is money out of your bottom line,” Kyser said. The seminar is one of four focusing on manufacturing hosted by the Verdugo Workforce Investment Board.
