Sense of Urgency Not Shared by State House Leaders
The Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance made the following statement today in response to the announcement that Brooks Brothers will be closing its manufacturing site in Haverhill. Known as the Southwick Clothing Factory, the facility employed over 400 workers. At the beginning of the shutdown, they even began manufacturing personal protection equipment. The Southwick factory is highlighted on Brooks Brother’s website, which may be found by clicking here.
Southwick is the second well-known Massachusetts manufacturing business to announce the closure of operations in as many months. Crane Stationary, which has operated in North Adams since 1801, announced in April they would close their North Adams facility. These businesses, and the jobs they provided, will be missed in their communities.
“Yesterday’s re-open strategy announcement really just signaled more of the same. Now even parts of the big national billion-dollar chains operating in Massachusetts are feeling it. The small retail, lodging, and restaurant businesses that form the backbone of our economy continue to be prohibited from opening. It should not come as a surprise that Massachusetts small businesses are losing their will to operate. What was once a point of pride for Massachusetts, ‘made in Massachusetts’ is about to become an old-fashioned saying,” stated Paul D. Craney, spokesperson for Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance.
“Every Massachusetts politician involved in this process has a guaranteed taxpayer funded salary, automatic pay raises, downtown Boston parking spot, healthcare for life, and state-backed pension. Their lack of urgency to reopen shouldn’t come as a surprise. There is no way North Adams can replace Crane Stationary or Haverhill can compete with New Hampshire’s taxpayer friendly tax policies. These businesses are gone, their communities left hopeless, but State House leaders continue to ignore the pain caused by their policies because their bank accounts are unscathed,” concluded Craney.