The IAM is calling on President Obama to proceed with caution during the administration’s ongoing export control review, and to not assume that easing export controls will necessarily lead to U.S. job creation.
“While current export controls are in need of reform, we must be mindful that policies that encourage or facilitate further outsourcing of technology (especially technology funded by U.S. taxpayers) and production can and do have a detrimental impact on U.S. workers and will impede our nation’s recovery,” said IAM President Tom Buffenbarger in his January 29 letter to President Obama.
Easing restrictions on the transfer of technology, for example, could hurt U.S. workers in the near term and long term as countries use the transferred technology to develop their own industries.
“Claims made by some that weakening export controls will lead to job creation should be met with healthy skepticism,” said Buffenbarger. “Many of those who make this claim represent corporations that have developed (or would like to develop) industrial capacity in the very same countries that would benefit from weakened export controls.”
