89. In the five years to September 1973, manufacturing employment increased by 26% or by about 43% a year on average. Employ- ment was increasing in most of the industries shown in the three years to September 1971 but, in the next two years, employment in a number of industries declined quite significantly. The decline in employment in the textiles industry (excluding wearing apparel) is particularly noticeable, but there were also quite sharp decreases in the case of footwear, transport equipment and plastic products (where the decline appears to have been concentrated in the third quarter of 1973 possibly reflecting difficulties arising from emerging raw material shortages at this time). Employment in the chemical, rubber and non-metallic mineral prod- ucts industries, which had already been declin- ing, also decreased markedly in the two years to September 1973. On the other hand, employ- ment in this two year period continued to expand in the case of several other industries, including wearing apparel, furniture (including wood and cork products), metal products and machinery, electrical appliances and electronics, and scien- tific and measuring equipment and photographic and optical goods.
Estimated Proportion of Sales and Work Done represented by Exports for Selected Industries (values), 1970
Table 35
domestic exports, in quantity terms, and in manufacturing employment, in the industries concerned would move in the same direction. A comparison of the employment figures in Table 34 with the figures in Table 9(b) indicates that this is generally the case.
91. But domestic exports of textiles (exclud- ing wearing apparel), in quantity terms, con- tinued to increase after 1971 even though employment in the industry was then declining. It is probable, therefore, that labour productivity increased in the textiles industry for, although exports accounted for less than half of total sales in 1970, it is likely that a very high proportion of domestic output of textiles represents inputs to the wearing apparel industry, the output of which has generally been rising.
Manufacturing Employment and the Growth of the Economy
92. Although manufacturing employment was growing at about 43% a year on average in the period September 1968 to September 1973, the rate of growth has, in fact, declined since 1969. The rate of growth of the gross domestic product declined, in constant price terms, from 15% in 1969 to 7% in 1970. The rate of growth of domestic exports, which account for 80-85% by value of manufacturing output, also de- creased, in quantity terms, from 16% in 1969 to 10% in 1970, and against this background the decline in the rate of growth of manufacturing employment at about this time is, perhaps, to be expected.
Increase in Manufacturing Employment*, 1969-1973
Industry
%
Textiles except wearing apparel
45
Wearing apparel except footwear
88
Footwear except rubber, plastic and
Table 36
wooden footwear
72
Fabricated metal products except
Twelve months to Sep:
machinery and equipment
61
1969
Electrical machinery, apparatus,
1970
appliances and supplies
84
1971
Professional and scientific measuring
1972
and controlling equipment, photographic and optical goods
80
1973
%
14.6
4.6
4.6
0.7
0.0
Changes in Manufacturing Employment and in Domestic Exports
90. Table 35 shows, for selected manufac- turing industries, the estimated proportion of total sales represented by export sales in 1970. With the exception of textiles (excluding wearing apparel), the proportions are relatively high and it might be expected, therefore, that changes in
30
* in establishments registered with or recorded by
the Labour Department.
93. In 1971, the rate of growth of the gross domestic product, in constant price terms, and domestic exports, in quantity terms, declined further, to 2% and 4% respectively, whilst manufacturing employment continued to in- crease at the same rate (5%) as in the previous
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