JAMA Golf Outing & Euchre Tourney! Don’t miss JAMA’s Annual Golf Outing and Euchre Tournament on Aug. 23 at the Country Club of Jackson. Great food, fun & prizes! Download...
JAMA Member NEX Solutions Chosen as a 2010 MI Top 50 Company to WatchNEX Solutions has been recognized as one of the 2010 “Michigan 50 Companies to Watch,” an award sponsored by the Edward Lowe Foundation...
Tenneco expansion to add jobsBy Chris Gautz | Jackson Citizen Patriot
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Tenneco plans to invest $3.5 million into its Grass Lake engineering...
ADCO Products will expand operations in Jackson CountyBy Chris Gautz/J. Scott Park
Jackson Citizen Patriot
March 17, 2010
In the next five years, more than 200 jobs will come to...
See All News & Events Articles
Subscribe to the News Feed
Rayl pleads auto suppliers’ case in D.C.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
By Chris Gautz
cgautz@citpat.com—768-4926
While members of President Obama’s automotive task force spent Monday in Detroit assessing how much federal assistance General Motors and Chrysler will get, Bill Rayl spent parts of the past two weeks in Washington, D.C., seeking help for local suppliers.
Rayl, executive director of the Jackson Area Manufacturers Association, was there officially to participate in The Workforce Alliance’s 2009 summit.
But he also echoed the calls of another group, the Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association, which was in the nation’s capital at the same time looking for federal assistance for more than just automakers.
``If we prop up the Big Three and the suppliers die, it ripples back up and that money is wasted,’’ Rayl said.
He met with a number of legislators and their staffs about federal support for auto suppliers and thinks there will be some support coming. How much support, when it will come and what shape it will take have not been determined, he said.
The assistance could go directly to the automakers with requirements that the money be used to pay suppliers, such as those in Jackson. Because of their struggles, automakers have not paid or have delayed payments to suppliers for parts they received months ago.
``We’re not asking for a handout. We’re asking for support to get through this,’’ Rayl said.
Not everyone on Capitol Hill was receptive, but he said doing nothing is not an option.
``If you stand on the sideline and watch the house burn down, you’re just as guilty as the guy who set the fire, I think,’’ he said.
``We know there’s a fire. Let’s try our best to contain this thing.’’
Workforce Alliance summit attendees talked about federal stimulus funds available to encourage people to further their education.
Rayl said about 50 percent of the jobs across the country require an education level beyond a high school diploma, but less than a four-year college degree.
The Workforce Alliance is a national coalition of community-based organizations, including community colleges, unions, business leaders and local officials, according to its Web site.
Last week, Rayl went back to Washington to meet with the National Association of Manufacturers, which was rolling out a new skills certificate system.
It would apply a national stamp of approval on certifications in various trades taught at institutions such as the Jackson Area Manufacturers Association’s Academy for Manufacturing Careers.
Rayl said many of the classes taught at the academy already certify at this level or higher in some cases.
``It’s good for the workers and it’s good for the companies,’’ Rayl said.
``When people come knocking at their door, they know that person can run their equipment.”