TORONTO, Sept. 26, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ontario lost 169,800 manufacturing jobs from 2007 to 2017 while neighbouring Michigan added 47,000 above pre-recession levels over the same period, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.

“Michigan and Ontario have a lot in common, but while Michigan has revived its manufacturing sector since the recession, Ontario manufacturing continues to struggle,” said Ben Eisen, Fraser Institute senior fellow and co-author of The Power of Comprehensive Policy Reform: Lessons for Ontario from Michigan.

While both jurisdictions were hard hit during the 2009 recession, Michigan has enjoyed a much more successful recovery in the past 10 years.

For example, Michigan not only surpassed its pre-recession manufacturing jobs levels while Ontario did not, but from 2011 to 2017, Michigan’s overall annual private-sector employment growth rate (1.9 per cent, on average) outpaced Ontario’s (1.4 per cent, on average). And Michigan has also outperformed Ontario in terms of per-person economic growth over the same seven-year period.

So why the difference in the two jurisdictions post-recession?

While many factors contribute to economic recovery, Michigan did implement several substantial policy reforms starting in 2011, including: simplifying and lowering the state’s corporate income tax system, passing “right-to-work” legislation to increase worker choice, slowing the growth of government spending and reducing state debt.

“In the face of daunting challenges, Michigan took charge of its economic future with an ambitious reform package that has coincided with substantial job growth and a rebirth of manufacturing in the state,” Eisen said.

“Ontario should take note of Michigan’s policy reforms and its successful economic turnaround.”

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Ben Eisen, Director, Provincial Prosperity Studies
Fraser Institute

To arrange media interviews or for more information, please contact:
Bryn Weese, Associate Director, Communications
(604) 688-0221 ext. 589
bryn.weese@fraserinstitute.org

                  Follow the Fraser Institute on Twitter  |  Like us on Facebook

The Fraser Institute is an independent Canadian public policy research and educational organization with offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal and ties to a global network of think-tanks in 87 countries. Its mission is to improve the quality of life for Canadians, their families and future generations by studying, measuring and broadly communicating the effects of government policies, entrepreneurship and choice on their well-being. To protect the Institute’s independence, it does not accept grants from governments or contracts for research. Visit www.fraserinstitute.org

Report Abuse