Sen. Jason Welch, Bristol Legislators Listen to Area Manufacturers

Bristol State Sen. Jason Welch and State Rep. Whit Betts listen to Bauer Inc. President and CEO Lou Auletta, Jr. during Thursday’s roundtable discussion to examine the needs of local manufacturers. The discussion was organized by CONNSTEP.

Sen. Jason Welch and Bristol legislators joined local manufacturers at Bauer, Inc. this morning to learn more about the business issues area companies are facing.

Welch, Rep. Whit Betts, Rep. Betty Boukus, and Rep. Frank Nicastro met with Bauer Inc. President and CEO Lou Auletta, Jr. and Plymouth Spring Company Inc. Vice President Gerard Barrieau Jr. at Bauer’s 175 Century Drive facility. Bauer is a world leader in supporting aircraft wheel and brake shops with a product line that significantly improves productivity, work environment and safety.

The roundtable discussion was organized by CONNSTEP (www.connstep.org), a business consulting organization that helps small and midsize Connecticut manufacturing companies take advantage of expert business solutions to compete and grow profitably.

“The message I clearly heard today was, ‘Whatever you do in Hartford, don’t make the environment worse than it already is,’” Welch said. “There are far too many hurdles for local manufacturers in Connecticut. We need to reduce the costs of job creation and job retention. We need to pass bills which show that this state is open for business.”

From the paid sick leave bill currently under consideration by the General Assembly to the many costly state mandates that private employers must comply with, the legislators were provided with several examples of issues which hamper job growth. The legislators said they would continue to push policies which reduce burdens on employers. Those measures include policies to improve workforce development and training as well as incentives for businesses to grow jobs here in Connecticut.

“Sometimes it’s easy for people to say what business does or doesn’t need, but I think it’s important to speak to these businesses and hear it first hand,” Betts said. “A lot of businesses are worried about rising costs of doing business, higher taxes, expensive mandates- you name it. I really hope the legislature is listening, because if we continue to take aim on businesses it will take our state much longer to recover.”

“We have a long way to go and a lot we need to accomplish, but it all starts with discussions like this one,” Welch said. “The lines of communications between government and business are open and they need to stay open. These manufacturers are the engines that drive our economy. We need to create a climate which allows them to thrive.”

Following the roundtable discussion, legislators toured Bauer’s operations and answered questions from Bauer employees.

CONNSTEP President Bonnie Del Conte was also in attendance, “Now is an opportune time – with a new administration and invested legislators – to pull all of the people and pieces together to form a long-term business development and growth strategy for the state,” Del Conte said. “Connecticut has the resources to provide the next generation manufacturing workforce, to be the ‘right place’ for manufacturing. With a strategy, we can solve the issues that we heard around the table today.”