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Remarks Prepared for Delivery by
U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao
Press Conference at Port of Houston
Houston, TX
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Thank you, Judge Emmett.
I am pleased to be here today with Jim Edmonds, Chairman of the Port of Houston Authority, Tom Kornegay, the Executive Director of the Port Authority, and all of the representatives of labor and management who are here today as well.
As Jim has noted, the Port of Houston is a tremendous economic resource for this state, providing thousands of good paying jobs for working men and women.
The cooperation and partnership amongst workers, employers, unions and associations has made the Port an engine of growth and jobs for this community.
Estimates suggest over 90 percent of world trade is moved by water. U.S. foreign trade has grown at more than twice the rate of overall U.S economic growth over the last four years. And exports contributed nearly a full percentage point to the strong 4-percent GDP growth we saw in the 2nd quarter. The waterborne segment increased by 58 percent last year. In 2006, waterborne trade represented 9.7 percent of U.S. GDP, up from 7.4 percent in 2003. This is one of the reasons why our U.S. ports are so important to our economy.
Today, the full fleet of the U.S. maritime industry is absolutely vital to our nation's economic and national security. And equally vital are our ports and public and private facilities, like those here at the Port of Houston. This port is one of two centers of international trade here in the U.S. It is ranked first in the United States in foreign waterborne tonnage, and second in terms of total tonnage. About 100 steamship lines operate out of the port transporting imports and exports to and from over 1,000 ports in 203 countries worldwide.
The Port of Houston generates thousands of jobs and tremendous economic growth for the region and the Texas economy. During 2006, the Port of Houston contributed $117.6 billion to the state's economy. This is a tribute to the strong partnerships between employers, workers and unions at this Port.
As we look to the future, it is important to ensure that workers have the education and training they need to access skilled, good paying jobs at the Port of Houston, such as harbor pilots, longshoremen and able-bodied seamen.
Just this week, the Department of Labor released a new report entitled "America's Dynamic Workforce." It shows that over the next decade, the majority of new jobs created will require more skills, more education and pay higher wages. So public-private partnerships, like the one that has made this Port so successful, will be more important than ever before in helping to ensure that workers have the skills and training they need to access these growing opportunities.
So thank you for everything you are doing to create jobs and strengthen Texas and our country. And now I will be happy to take a few questions.
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