October, 05 2020, 12:00am EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Derrick Robinson (202) 909-6355, Rdrobinson@citizen.org
Matthew Groch (202) 454-5111, mgroch@citizen.org
During Trump Presidency, 200,000 Jobs Offshored and Corporations Involved Awarded $425 Billion in Federal Contracts
Public Citizen releases new report "promises made, workers betrayed: Trump’s bigly broken promise to stop job offshoring."
WASHINGTON
President Donald Trump has awarded more than $425 billion in federal contracts to corporations listed among those responsible for offshoring 200,000 American jobs during his presidency, according to a new report released today by Public Citizen.
In 2016, Trump promised voters in key industrial swing states that he would end job offshoring. He said he would deny firms that offshored from U.S. government contracts so that they would bring jobs back to America in order to keep billions in lucrative government business. Yet eight out of the top 10 firms receiving government contracts during the Trump presidency have been government-certified as having offshored jobs, the report reveals.
Public Citizen's report, which analyzes U.S. Labor Department (DoL) trade-related job loss and USASpending procurement data includes tables of firms, contract amounts and jobs offshored.
Key report findings include:
- To date, 311,427 American workers have been government-certified as losing jobs to trade during Trump's presidency, with 202,543 jobs explicitly certified as offshored.
- Under Trump, one-in-four taxpayer dollars spent on federal procurement contracts - at least $425.6 billion - went to firms offshoring jobs during his presidency.
- Half of the top 10 recipients of Trump-era contracts were certified by the U.S. government as having offshored jobs during the Trump administration.
- Trump is currently pledging to ban federal contracts to firms that offshore to China, but to date has awarded $113.9 billion to firms that did just that. Top-100 federal contract recipients, Boeing, General Electric, Dell, Honeywell and Merck collectively offshored 6,038 jobs to China during the Trump administration and were awarded $113.9 billion in government contracts starting in FY 2017.
- United Technologies (UT) was a top recipient of Trump government contracts, receiving $15.1 billion dollars from FY 2017 to FY 2019 even as it offshored at least 1,300 of the Carrier jobs that president-elect Trump pledged to save. Jobs of 600 workers at Carrier's Indianapolis plant and all 700 at Carrier's Huntington, Indiana plant were offshored to Mexico in 2017. Under Trump the DoL certified UT as offshoring a total of 1,572 jobs and previously certified 11,459 jobs offshored among the 16,981 jobs that the DoL shows that UT eliminated due to trade.
- Of the top 50 federal contractors, by dollars awarded in FYs 2017, 2018 and 2019, 28% were government-certified as having engaged in offshoring during the Trump administration, and of the top 100, 25% had offshored American jobs during his term. Many of the top 100 firms to which the Trump administration awarded government contracts offshored jobs during his administration and were notorious chronic job offshorers certified for tens of thousands of job losses.
- Boeing, General Electric and UT were among the largest recipients of government contracts during the Trump era even as they all offshored jobs. During the Trump administration, Boeing offshored 5,800 jobs; General Electric offshored 2,046; and United Technologies offshored 1,572 jobs - including many from its Carrier division, the firm whose workers Trump promised to save.
- The Trump administration awarded on average 2.5 times the amount, or $10 billion more, in contracts to firms that offshored during his term than to those that did not.
The report was released at a press conference (recording available here). Participating members of Congress discussed the report's findings:
Rep. Raul M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), chair of the House Committee on Natural Resources said:
"Trump lied to America's workers when he told them jobs were staying in the United States. Under his watch jobs have left while he continues rewarding outsourcing corporations with millions of dollars in lucrative government contracts - in the middle of a pandemic. This latest report by Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch confirms the gaping hole between Trump's campaign promises and his failed leadership. Hard-working Americans who have dedicated decades to these companies are now forced to fend for themselves in an unstable job market that continues reeling from the impacts of COVID-19. Working families deserve better."
Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) said: "After promising Michiganders the moon, there's been a net loss of over 50,000 manufacturing jobs under Trump. And he's currently the first president in generations to oversee a net job loss. This report shows what workers in my state already know: the Trump administration awarded at least $425 billion in government contracts to corporations that offshored U.S. jobs. He may have promised workers to end job offshoring. But his actions show, he was really just paying billions to corporations who took away American jobs. Bringing the supply chain back to America strengthens domestic manufacturing and improves national security."
Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) said: "I first ran for Congress to put an end to the destructive trade deals that were shipping jobs overseas. In 2016, Trump struck a chord with voters in my district, and across the country, by promising to bring those jobs back - but he has done just the opposite. Since elected, President Trump has given tax incentives and awarded hundreds of billions of dollars in federal contracts to corporations that send jobs overseas. Enough is enough. It is past time to level the playing field and cut American workers in on the deal."
Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) said: "Time and time again, Donald Trump has proven that he will always put his corporate friends' profits over the lives of American workers. An administration that has promised to bring jobs back to our country - including Wisconsin - has given some of the largest government contract handouts to companies known for offshoring jobs. The people of Wisconsin are fed up with the endless broken promises from Donald Trump and job losses that have only gotten worse because of his failure to respond to this pandemic. Donald Trump has failed American workers."
Rep. Brendon Boyle (D-Pa.) said: "As a candidate in 2016, President Trump said he'd stop job offshoring and quickly. As President, his administration has overseen 200,000+ jobs offshored. Working families know this economy is stacked against them as American workers face stagnant wages, benefit reductions and unfair foreign competition. Many of the top 100 firms to whom the Trump administration awarded government contracts, are notorious & chronic job offshorers. President Trump simply failed in holding up his end of the bargain when he allowed these jobs to land in foreign countries."
Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass. ) also commented on the report: "This report is more evidence that Donald Trump is the King of Offshoring. For his entire term in office, Trump has awarded billions in new government contracts to firms notorious for serial American job outsourcing, showered giant multinational corporations with tax giveaways, shrugged his shoulders while people get laid off and jobs are shipped overseas - and he keeps lying through his teeth about it all. We need a President and a Congress that will defend our workers and create jobs here at home."
Lori Wallach, director of Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch said: "This is straight up promises made, workers betrayed. Trump won in 2016 by pledging to voters in key industrial swing states that he would end job offshoring but 200,000 more American jobs have been offshored during his presidency. Trump said he would bar firms that offshored from getting U.S. government contracts so that they'd bring jobs back to America in order to keep that lucrative government business but eight out of the top 10 firms receiving government contracts during the Trump presidency have been government-certified as having offshored jobs with at least one of every four taxpayer dollars spent on federal procurement contracts - at least $425.6 billion - going to firms offshoring jobs during his presidency."
Public Citizen is a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization that champions the public interest in the halls of power. We defend democracy, resist corporate power and work to ensure that government works for the people - not for big corporations. Founded in 1971, we now have 500,000 members and supporters throughout the country.
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