By Paul Tuthill
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wamc/local-wamc-988542.mp3
Northhampton, MA – The Massachusetts economy is showing signs of weakening according to a panel of leading economists. Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick says it is all the more reason why the state and the nation need the jobs bill proposed by President Obama. WAMC's Pioneer Valley Bureau Chief Paul Tuthill reports..
The Massachusetts economy, which had recovered more quickly from the 2008 recession than the nation as a whole, is showing signs of trouble. This is the view of a panel of 17 economists, who are associated with the journal MassBenchmarks, which reports on the Massachusetts economy.
The state's technology and bio-pharmaceutical industries have led the way in the recovery, but now global demand is flagging for the products these Massachusetts firms specialize in , according to Marty Romitti, the director of economic and policy research at the University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute.
The Massachusetts unemployment rate in August , which is the most recent month available, was 7 point 4 percent lower than the national average of 9 point 1 percent. But the state's economy lost jobs in August for the first time in three months. And, the average time it takes someone who is unemployed to find a new job is 35 weeks..the highest its ever been.
Romitti says the MassBenchmark economists say consumer demand is the spark that is needed to convince companies to hire people. So, in the national debate over whether the federal government should spend less..or spend more, this panel of economists concludes fiscal austerity will prolong economic suffering.
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick is leading proponent of President Obama's jobs bill which calls for new federal spending on infrastructure.. Patrick made the case for it during a Sunday appearance on NBC's " Meet The Press" and last Friday when Patrick was in Northampton for an economic development announcement.
A 50 million dollar expansion of the Coca-Cola plant in Northampton was facilitiated by a 1 point 25 million dollar grant from the state to pay for improvements to the waste water treatment infrastructure. An investment tax credit from the state worth three quarters of a million dollars and local property tax breaks helped finance the expansion that created 100 new jobs.
Troy Ellis, senior vice president of manufacturing at Coca-Cola said their Northampton operation competed with other Coke plants in the region to get the expanded production lines.
The Northampton plant packages non-carbonated beverages including Honest Tea, an organic and fair trade certified iced tea. Honest Tea president Seth Goldman says 360 thousand bottles a day come out of the Northampton plant for distribution as far west as the Rockies.
The Northampton Coca-Cola plant employs over 260 people and has production lines running around the clock.