Hudson River town wonders what's next as GE plant heads south in latest NY manufacturing loss (12/21/13 2:14 pm)

Heading south in this case means moving to Florida. Losing manufacturing jobs is a national trend and Florida has lost 18 percent of its manufacturing jobs too, but not as much as other states. Florida is about to surpass the state of New York in total population, making it the third largest state in the nation. There are many reasons for this which we will explore more in this blog. Click title for link to article. Here is what is happening:

The Fort Edward facility and a long-closed sister plant in neighboring Hudson Falls used PCBs in production until 1977, and river sediment contaminated by discharges of the oily substance is being dredged by GE as part of a multi-year federal Superfund cleanup that could cost $2 billion.
With 177 production workers and 20 salaried employees, GE is not the biggest employer in the region. But the Fairfield, Connecticut-based company pays well. Production workers here average $28.50 an hour, according to estimates cited by the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers Local 332.
GE officials say the plant has been losing money for several years and they will move to an existing facility in Clearwater, Florida, where the company can take advantage of efficiencies of scale. GE spokeswoman Christine Horne said their competitors are in lower-cost locations.