Employ
Supporting job
retention and expansion
For AWB, jobs are Job 1. Encouraging and supporting job
retention and creation is at the heart of everything we do,
from advocating in the halls of the state Capitol in Olympia
to leading fly-ins to Washington, D.C.
In 2015, we engaged industry sector leaders in a variety
of ways, including:
• Developing the AWB Manufacturing Council: Now in its
second year, the council is a place where Washington
employers gather to discuss ways that legislators and policy
makers can gain a better understanding of the impacts that
taxes and regulations have on the industry sector.
• Hosting the 4th annual Manufacturing Summit: Small,
medium and large manufacturers gathered in November to
learn about best practices and hear first-hand from students
about the next generation of manufacturing workforce.
• Continuing Leadership Washington: The inaugural ninemember class of AWB Institute’s premiere leadership
training program graduated last spring and the second
class of participants kicked off at the AWB Policy Summit
in September.
• Opportunity Washington: Together with our partners at the
Washington Roundtable and the Washington Research
Council, this initiative is working to expand Washington’s
culture of opportunity to individuals, families, employers
and communities in every corner of the state.
• Publishing the Competitiveness Redbook: The annual
handbook is a data-driven look at how Washington’s
business climate compares with other states in dozens
of metrics, from taxes to commute times.
All of these efforts are aimed at supporting innovation and
entrepreneurship, keeping the good jobs we already have,
and creating the new jobs — and industries — of the future.
A state of
manufacturing
In February, Jay Timmons, CEO
of the National Association of
Manufacturers, brought the
2015 State of Manufacturing
Tour to Washington with stops
in Olympia and Spokane.
293,000
Number of manufacturing
employees in Washington
50,000
Estimated jobs left unfilled
in Washington state by
2017 due to the skills gap