Susan Helper Archives

Ford Motor Co. Invests Over $1 Billion in Cleveland

A Ford company sign near a factory with several smokestacks in the background. Trees partially obstruct the view of the industrial setting.

PVMI member Susan Helper discusses Ford Motor Company’s recent decision to invest upwards of $1 billion in Cleveland-area plants.…Read More

Trump’s Battle on Car Emission Standards Could Hurt the Auto Industry

A close-up view of a car''s dual exhaust pipes with a slightly rusted surface.

PVMI member Susan Helper explain that relaxed emissions standards may lead to “less innovation and less competitiveness” for U.S. automakers.…Read More

Opinion: Closure of General Motors’ Lordstown Plant Was Not Inevitable

A white Chevrolet car with an American flag draped over the hood is in a factory setting, surrounded by a group of people.

In an opinion piece, PVMI member Susan Helper blames both GM’s practices and U.S. public policies for the recent shutdown of a Lordstown, Ohio plant.…Read More

Can A Reagan-Era Policy Offer An Alternative To Tariffs?

Two people wearing hard hats examine a blueprint at a construction site next to a large sign reading "Toyota Our New Old Kentucky Home."

A Reagan-era trade policy impacting the auto industry could offer a useful example to the current administration, says PVMI member Susan Helper. In an interview with NPR, Helper addresses the 1981 voluntary export restraint placed on Japanese carmakers in lieu of a tariff. …Read More

Why Undermining Fuel Efficiency Standards Would Harm the U.S. Auto Industry

An automotive assembly line with partially assembled cars being worked on by several technicians. The vehicles are mounted on yellow overhead supports.

Efforts to roll back U.S. fuel efficiency standards could erode the auto industry’s last decade of progress, warns PVMI member Susan Helper. In an opinion piece for the Brookings Institute, Helper and coauthors Jason Miller and Mark Muro write that a single, progressively more stringent national standard has been instrumental…Read More

Here’s What Happens When a Chinese Firm Buys a Closed GM Plant

The image shows a modern office building with a glass facade, surrounded by a landscaped area with tall, colorful sculptures labeled "Fuyao." The sky is blue with scattered clouds.

On his campaign trail, President Trump widely accused China of stealing American jobs and using unfair trade practices. But the reality is more complex: a Chinese firm recently bought a closed GM plant and turned it into a glass factory, in fact giving a lifeline in a hard-hit part of…Read More

The Real Apprentice: How to Bring Jobs Back

Two people wearing safety glasses are inspecting a piece of equipment or material in an industrial setting. They appear focused on their task.

Closing America’s job skills gap hinges on apprenticeship programs, suggests a new Department of Commerce study. Apprenticeships train workers to fill important jobs, providing companies with a talent pipeline, and perhaps most critically, allow companies to bring on highly skilled workers to complement new technologies and equipment. Despite fears surrounding…Read More

Many Lament Job Losses as Auto Work Moves to Mexico

Industrial robotic arm in a factory setting, with various cables and mechanical components, indicating automation and manufacturing processes.

The North American Free Trade Agreement has been criticized for massive job losses in the United States’ midwestern automotive industry as jobs move to Mexico. PVMI member Susan Helper, a professor at Case Western Reserve University, notes that the expansion of the auto sector in Japan and South Korea, as well as the nonunion southeastern United States, is also to blame.…Read More