Rust Belt Rebounds Economically;But Study Finds a Lag in Jobs, Population, Political Clout
The nation's Rust Belt is rebounding economically but losing its political clout as it falls behind the South and West in population and jobs, according to a new analysis by the Northeast-Midwest Institute.</br></br>The report finds that after enduring high unemployment-10.3 percent-in the 1982 recession, the region's economy has improved and its unemployment was 6.5 percent in 1986, lower than in the South or West. Many of the manufacturing jobs lost during the recession are being replaced by high-tech service jobs, with New England performing especially well, the report says.</br></br>But the giant arc of 18 states stretching from Maryland through the Middle Atlantic and New England states and across the Midwest is steadily falling behind in population, according to the report by the institute, which represents public officials from the Northeast and Midwest.</br></br>Moreover, the region is lagging the South and West for the first time in manufacturing jobs and stands to lose 14 House seats in reapportionment after the 1990 census, pushing its share down to two-fifths.</br></br>The Northeast-Midwest sector has lost nearly 2 million manufacturing jobs since 1979, falling to 9.4 million in 1986, about 150,000 below the manufacturing total in the South and West.