LANSING – The pending closure of the Electrolux plant – which makes Frigidaire refrigerators in Greenville – is the latest poster child for job losses in Michigan. Our state has lost 185,000 manufacturing jobs since 1999 – the same number of hourly plant workers employed by Daimler-Chrysler and General Motors combined.

Nationwide, the manufacturing sector has lost 2.6 million jobs since President Bush took office in 2001, making those job losses one of the top issues in this year’s race for the White House.

With that backdrop, Gov. Jennifer Granholm addressed the 46th Annual Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council Legislative Conference on March 2. Following is a selection of her remarks:

“The chief of the president’s economic advisors said that outsourcing is good for America. He also said that hamburger flipping is the equivalent of manufacturing. Well I’m certain that those who have lost manufacturing jobs over the last few years in Michigan are happy to know that they have a bright future flipping burgers. It’s outrageous what’s going on.

“The notion of this president is that if you give tax cuts to wealthiest, there is supposed to be an investment in the creation of jobs. The problem is that the second half of that equation is not come to pass. They’ve done all of these tax cuts. While we have seen a recovery on Wall Street we have not seen a recovery on Main Street.

“I know a lot of people who have been deeply affected by job losses. I use the Electrolux plant in Greenville as an example. Greenville is a town of 8,000 people. Electrolux employed 2,700 of those who lived there. When a company that sizes pulls up its roots and moves to Mexico it’s like a nuclear bomb going off in that town.

“There’s not a single person in Greenville who will not be affected by Electrolux’s decision to go to Mexico.

“Even though the UAW came in with $32 million a year in concessions and the state went to them and said we will give you zero taxes for 20 years, even though we offered them an entirely new plant, they said, well we can pay workers $1.57 with no benefits in Mexico. So we’re going to pull out.

“This is serious business, this situation with NAFTA and the other trade agreements that are currently pending. If there are no wage and environmental standards, we are giving points to the other team. We are allowing other countries to suck our jobs away. Why are we subsidizing this kind of job loss?

“Our workers can be competitive but we just have to make sure the playing field is level. It is not level at the moment, and we have to have a president that understands that we have to level the playing field so that we are not assisting in the hemorrhaging of job losses.

“It is clear we need a new president. It is clear we need some more assistance in the legislature, for your benefit. I want to make it clear, that you have a great partner in me.

“Our workforce is clearly an important part of our economic development. Jobs, jobs, jobs is the drumbeat that we’re going to sound this year. It is so important that we retain the jobs we have and that we grow jobs and diversify the economy. We are not going to throw in the towel to globalization.

“We are going to see what we can do about leveling that playing field so that we don’t we have to put up with those job losses, which I have heard are on a fast track to Mexico, on a slow boat to China or on the Internet to India. We’re not going to allow that to happen. That’s why we need new leadership at the top.

“Know that I am your ally, I am your sister, and I will make sure that the interests of you and your members are protected now and well into the future.”

MICHIGAN GOV. Jennifer Granholm addresses Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council delegates.