Job Creation That’s Working

Statistics released last week by the U.S. Department of Labor showed that the economy gained 244,000 jobs in April.  Where did these jobs come from?  Are the cries for more job creation legislation finally being heeded?  And are there job creation programs that are actually paying off?

Job creation legislation is a tricky thing.  When most people in the U.S. demand the government do something about high unemployment, they aren’t asking that the government to add millions of people to the government pay roll.  Far from it.  What Americans are looking for is legislation that encourages the private sector to hire more people.  No easy task, especially coming out of the worst economic downturn since the depression; business are understandably squeamish about adding expenses.

One program that’s working comes from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).  NIST’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) is a public-private partnership established by Congress in 1988 to help small- and mid-sized manufacturers increase growth, cut costs  and create innovative new products and services.

MEP offers its clients a wealth of unique and effective resources centered on five critical areas: technology acceleration, supplier development, sustainability, workforce and continuous improvement.  Clients negotiate a fee based on their company’s resources and expected benefits from participating in the program.

According to the Commerce Department, in 2009 the MEP helped businesses create or retain 72,075 jobs.  MEP seems to be a job creation program that works.