CSLF Report, Publication No. 26, Aug. 2, 2016, Dave Sjoquist This report explores trends in employment and wages in manufacturing, focusing on the period since 1996 when the decline in Georgia manufacturing jobs began. The trends are then compared to the United States. As of 2014, manufacturing jobs accounted for less than 7 percent of employment in the state, and these jobs were not expected to grow in the long run, even after the U.S. fully recovers from the Great Recession.