Interesting new research findings on the decline of US steel
industry –
“From 1962-2005, the
U.S. steel industry cut 400,000 employees. The decline had massive effects. For
example, Pittsburgh (the former center of the U.S. steel industry) fell from
10th to 52nd largest city in the U.S. However, U.S. steel productivity grew:
worker output increased 5-fold, and factory output increased by 38%. How?
According to Duke economist Allan Collard-Wexler, new technology — the steel
minimill — quickly replaced less efficient “vertically integrated” mills.
During this time, domestic steel production returned to 1960s levels. Meaning:
the drop in steel employment was not the result of globalization or the steel
industry moving from the Midwest. Instead, jobs in steel were displaced by
technology.”
Original study –
Collard-Wexler, Allan and Jan De Loecker. 2015.
"Reallocation and Technology: Evidence from the US Steel Industry."
American Economic Review, 105(1): 131-71.
http://www.princeton.edu/~jdeloeck/CWDL_AER.pdf
http://www.princeton.edu/~jdeloeck/CWDL_AER.pdf