Manufacturing jobs are “No. 1″ in President Barack Obama’s jobs plan, he said Tuesday at an Amazon shipping center in Chattanooga, Tenn., drawing attention to what local watchers say is a vital part of the Inland Empire’s economic recovery and growth.
That’s the related logistics and warehouse sector, which is central to the region’s economy, said Guadalupe Palma, director of Warehouse Workers United.
“It relates directly to what we are encountering in the Inland Empire, being the largest warehouse and distribution hub in the nation,” Palma said. “We estimate there are 85,000 warehouse workers in Riverside and San Bernardino counties. It’s possible that a small percentage of those are good jobs, but based on our experience working with warehouse workers for the past several years, time and time again we see that the majority of these are temporary jobs through staffing agencies, minimum wage jobs, treated like an expendable workforce.”