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The answer is yes, but.... I'm going to paraphrase an article I read in the past few months from The Worcester Business Journal to explain the "but".

Know that the U.S. is still the top, most productive manufacturer in the world.

One local small machine shop needed to expand production to meet growth requirements of incoming orders. They evaluated moving against adding a second shift. The second shift would have included a minimum of 2 but more likely 3 jobs with annual base payroll of $150,000. At least 1 machinist, 1 quality inspector  and 1 packer would be needed. With all the uncertainty coming from the Federal government about taxes and health care plus the rising cost of mandated health care in MA as well as state taxes, fees and regulations, they were hesitant.  The overhead (what the company has to pay on top of the payroll) was estimated between $75,000 and $150,000 above the expected payroll, possibly more. The cost projections were too uncertain and too high to hire anyone. They were in a dilemma until they looked at automatic equipment. They discovered that they could buy machines to automatically make parts, and inspect them for $300,000. Now, with the new equipment, they can complete their normal work day, set the machines to run, lock the doors and come back to bulk packed finished product with complete computerized inspection records - no sick days, no no-shows, no vacations, no retirement or bonuses and cost effective machine maintenance.

So our local manufacturer has expanded the productivity of his existing employees by adding machines to increase their manufacturing capability. As I recall from the article, the machines he purchased were made in the U.S. - also a plus. While the decision of this small company was appropriate, it reflects how hard it is to increase our manufacturing labor force. While the first thought of this company was to hire new people, there are 3 people in this area who did not get those jobs.

This is why a stable government, with stable laws and regulations is so necessary. Historically, the stability in the U.S. has been the reason it's been a good place to invest. Today, the rules are changing, it seems monthly if not daily - EPA, HHS, DOE, OSHA and the equivalent local agencies seem to embed new regulations so often a small, or even medium, company can be overwhelmed. If a company is going to grow, especially a small one, they have to know what their expected operating costs will be. If they can determine that, they can create jobs, if not, they automate or try to hold their own until the negatives turn positive or they close and the jobs go across the border - sometimes to an other state, other times to another country.

Here's an interesting video on the impact of licensing: http://www.pjtv.com/?cmd=mpg&mpid=113&load=5354