Over the weekend the US, Mexico and Canada reached an agreement to replace NAFTA with a new trade deal in the comings months. WKAR's Karel Vega reports the deal might mean more manufacturing jobs in Michigan.
The new trade agreement would require 40 to 45 percent of a car’s content be made by workers making at least $16 an hour.
Charlie Chesbrough is a senior economist with Cox Automotive, he says the increased wage requirements for Mexican workers may end up bringing more jobs to Michigan.
“It’s gonna make workers in the United States and Michigan in particular, because we are a very automotive focused state, we’re gonna be relatively cheaper than we were before in terms of labor." Chesbrough said. "So that we should see more economic activity at some point as manufacturers try to take advantage of that.”
The trade agreement also requires that 75-percent of a car or truck’s components be manufactured in North America. That’s up from 62-percent under NAFTA.