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Randy
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November 16, 2012
Rolls-Royce announced this week that they are investing $136 million for a second manufacturing plant at their Crosspointe facility in Prince George County, resulting in 140 new, highly skilled jobs. They will manufacture turbine blades for jet engines, including the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and Airbus A380. Sitework is scheduled to begin in December and construction is expected to be complete by the end of 2013.
Posted by
Randy
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November 02, 2012
Today, the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics released its jobs report for the month of October. According to the report, 171,000 were added to the economy; however, the unemployment rate rose from 7.8 percent to 7.9 percent. I thought you would be interested in reading a jobs update for Virginia’s Fourth District.
There is a simple truth when it comes to job creation in America: real solutions create real growth that generates real jobs. In order to make this happen, government needs to get out of the way and provide the freedom for small businesses to work, earn, and achieve. All across Virginia’s Fourth District, we have industries that are ripe for growth. The memo provides examples of how industries in Virginia have flourished when we’ve applied that simple truth. The case studies also show the potential for even more growth when government acts as an enabler rather than a barrier. Companies across the 4th District are adding jobs, such as Rolls-Royce at Crosspointe Park in Prince George County, Capital One Financial Corp. in Chesterfield County and Sabra Dipping Company in Colonial Heights. You can download the memo here or by clicking the report below. You can also view a text version on my website here.
Posted by
Randy
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August 17, 2011
This week I had the opportunity to tour the Unilever Lipton tea facility in Suffolk to learn about its aggressive recycling and composting program that has made them a “zero-landfill” facility. It's great to have such a successful waste-to-energy program in the Fourth District. Read more about the facility on the City of Suffolk website in a news article that was posted when Unilever achieved its “zero-landfill” status.
Posted by
Randy
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June 16, 2011
On April 20, the National Labor Relations Board filed a 10-page complaint against Boeing for its decision to locate a new assembly plant for the 787 Dreamliner in South Carolina. Like the Commonwealth of Virginia, South Carolina is a "right-to-work" state where individual employees can join unions voluntarily, but unions cannot force membership across entire worksites. The complaint alleges that the plant's location in South Carolina represented illegal retaliation against employees belonging to the International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers (IAM) that comprise the majority of the workforce of Boeing's main Seattle, Washington plant. IAM had gone on strike four times from 1989-2008, with the most recent 2008 strike lasting almost two months and costing the company nearly $100 million a day in deferred revenue. Boeing has hired nearly 1,000 new employees in its new South Carolina plant and has invested $2 billion in the project; the company argues that all jobs in South Carolina are new and not a single Washington State union member has lost a job as a result of the action. Now, the NLRB is seeking a judicial order for the company to shift all production of the 787 Dreamliner commercial jets to its main facility in Seattle. The New York Times called the suit “the strongest signal yet of the new pro-labor orientation of the National Labor Relationship Board under President Obama” and critics of the suit argue that "it would make it effectively impossible for U.S. companies to choose to open new facilities in right-to-work states if they are currently located in a state that allows forced unionization." Question of the Week: Are you concerned that the NLRB's lawsuit against Boeing will prevent other manufacturing companies from locating facilities in right-to-work states in the future, limiting job creation in states that do not force unionization? Take the poll here.
Posted by
Randy
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May 25, 2011
The manufacturing industry supports an estimated 18.6 million jobs in the United States – about one in six private sector jobs.
What do you think America needs to do to reinvigorate our manufacturing industry and create more jobs?
Posted by
Randy
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May 23, 2011
Multinational companies are creating jobs overseas and cutting their U.S. staffs. Below, see cumulative changes in the U.S. and abroad since 1999: The manufacturing industry has been especially hard-hit by this trend toward outsourcing, with manufacturers shifting low-value, labor-intensive production to other countries. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the U.S. has lost 5.5 million manufacturing jobs since 1998. By 2015, it is estimated that U.S. employers could move 3.4 million service sector jobs and $136 billion in wages overseas.
You can read more about the bill here.
Posted by
Randy
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May 04, 2011
It has been more than 100 days since President Obama issued an executive order and an accompanying Wall Street Journal op-ed calling for relief from regulatory “burdens that have stifled innovation and have had a chilling effect on growth and jobs.” The president’s message was reiterated in his State of the Union Address, in which he said, “To reduce barriers to growth and investment, I’ve ordered a review of government regulations. When we find rules that put an unnecessary burden on businesses, we will fix them.”
Yet, this year the administration has already issued over 24,000 pages of regulations. We must rein in the costly overreach by federal agencies that stifles job creation and hinders economic growth. That’s why I have consistently supported legislation that aims to achieve this goal. Imposing Restraints on Regulation I have cosponsored the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act, which provides for congressional review of agency rulemaking to require Congress’ approval of major rules of the executive branch before they may take effect. Increasing Scrutiny of Congressional Mandates and Regulations I have cosponsored legislation requiring Congress and the Executive Branch to disclose the cost—to both the government and the private sector—of any new regulation or proposed legislative mandates. Increasing Transparency in Federal Agencies I have cosponsored the Federal Agency Transparency Act, which requires federal agencies to publish receipts and expenditures on their websites every two weeks, establishing a level of federal transparency that American taxpayers deserve. Weigh in: Do you think the government is doing enough to rein in the cost of overregulation?
Posted by
Randy
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March 31, 2011
Last week, I had the privilege of attending a roundtable meeting with area business leaders and manufacturers at the Smithfield Food Headquarters. On our agenda? Discussing policies that will help rebuild jobs and energize manufacturing in America, like the Bring Jobs Back to America Act that I have cosponsored.
Posted by
Randy
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March 29, 2011
Question of the Week: How can the government best enable job growth?
Select from among any of the following answers that apply (you may select more than one):
Posted by
Randy
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September 10, 2010
As you know, I was one of only 17 Members of Congress to vote against both this stimulus and every other stimulus and bailout under the Bush and Obama Administrations because I believed that they would not work. |
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