Employment Security Department
Labor Market & Economic Analysis Branch
Rubber and Miscellaneous Plastics Products
Overview
During the 1990s, rubber and miscellaneous plastics products has been the fastest growing
manufacturing industry in the United States. Employment gains in rubber and plastics products have
been at a healthy pace; an average annual rate of 1.8 percent during the 1990s. In 1998, rubber and
plastics products employed over 1.01 million workers and shipped product worth $160 billion in 1998.
Rubber and plastic products are used by virtually all industries. On the rubber side, the dominant market
is automotive and other transportation (e.g., tires and inner tubes, hoses and belts, gaskets and seals);
industrial/machinery and building/construction are significant end-use markets along with consumer and
institutional markets. The versatility of plastics allows it to be used in everything from car parts to toys,
from soft drinks to appliances. Major end-use markets for plastics are packaging (e.g., bottles and
containers, bags and tubes); building and construction (e.g., pipe, conduit and fittings, other building
materials; consumer and institutional (e.g., serviceware, kitchenware, toys and sporting goods, laboratory
supplies); transportation (e.g., motor vehicles and parts); electrical and electronic (e.g., appliances,
electronic components, wire and cable coverings); furniture and furnishings (e.g., household and office
furniture); and adhesives, inks, and coatings (e.g., sealants, printing ink, paints and enamels).
Definition of rubber and miscellaneous plastics products industry
This industry report uses industry definitions and concepts that underlie the U.S. government's Standard
Industrial Classification (SIC) system. In the SIC system, rubber and miscellaneous plastics products (SIC
30) is a major industry, one of twenty such industries that form the manufacturing sector. According to
the Standard Industrial Classification, there are five separate rubber and miscellaneous plastics products
subsectors and 15 market segments defined by broad product categories. Each of the 16,700 rubber and
miscellaneous plastics products establishments operating in the United States in 1997 was placed in one
of these five industry subsectors:

Tires and inner tubes (SIC 301)—including pneumatic casings, inner tubes, and tires for all types
of vehicles, tire repair and retreading materials;

Rubber and plastic footware (SIC 302)—including rubber and plastic soles, injection moldings,
and protective footware, such as boots, overshoes, and gaiters;

Gaskets, packing, and sealing devises and rubber and plastics hose and belting (SIC 305)—
including rubber and plastics hose and belting, gaskets, and packing and sealing devises;

Fabricated rubber products, not elsewhere classified (SIC 306)—including molded and extruded
rubber goods, industrial rubber goods, miscellaneous rubber specialties and sundries; and

Miscellaneous plastic products (SIC 308)—including plastics film and sheet, rods and tubes,
laminated plate and sheet, plastic pipe, bottles and foam products, custom compounding,
plumbing fixtures, and miscellaneous specialties and sundries.
Although this industry covers most rubber and plastic products, some important rubber and plastics
products are classified elsewhere.
These products include boats, which are classified under
transportation equipment (SIC 37); and buttons, toys and buckles, which are grouped under
miscellaneous manufacturing (SIC 39). Buttons, toys and buckles are classified according to the final
product rather than by process because these products are not entirely made out of rubber or plastic.
The rubber and miscellaneous plastics products industry does include tire manufacture; however, the
recapping and retreading of automobile tires are classified under SIC 7534 (tire retreading and repair
shops) due to the utilization of different processes.
Current Status
In 1998, the Washington rubber and miscellaneous plastics products industry employed 9,200 workers;
representing about 2.5 percent of the state’s manufacturing workforce. Growth in the number of rubber
and miscellaneous plastics industry establishments in Washington has been steady; between 1981 and
1998, establishments were added at an average pace of 2.7 percent, with miscellaneous plastics
capturing the lion’s share of the industry’s growth.
Figure 1
Number of Establishments in Washington Rubber & Miscellaneous Plastics Products, 1981-1998
Source: Washington Employment Security Department
300
Number of establishments
250
200
150
100
50
0
1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998
M isc. plastics products
Other rubber & plastics
With the exception of one year (1991), the employment picture of Washington rubber and miscellaneous
plastics products is one of vigourous growth. For the 1981-1998 period, rubber and miscellaneous
plastics products employment grew on average 6.3 percent each year. While growth in other rubber and
plastic products (i.e., tires and inner tubes, rubber and plastics footwear, gaskets and seals, and
fabricated rubber products) has been significant (6.6 percent per annum), miscellaneous plastics enjoyed
robust employment growth (7.3 percent per annum). Rubber and miscellaneous plastics outperformed
manufacturing and total statewide employment for most years during the 1981-1998 period.
Key factors that affect the demand for many rubber and plastics products include the health of end-use
markets, growth in the overall economy, and trends in foreign trade. Plastic products are affected by
trends in key end-use markets such as packaging, building and construction, motor vehicles, and
electrical and electronics. These markets are in turn affected by trends in consumer spending, overall
growth in the national economy, and population growth.
Figure 2
Employment in Washington Rubber & Miscellaneous Plastics Products Industry, 1981-1998
Source: Washington Employment Security Department
10,000
9,000
8,000
Total employment
7,000
6,000
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
0
1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998
M isc. plastics products
Other rubber & plastics
Figure 3
Annual Percent Change in Employment: Rubber & Miscellaneous Plastics, All Manufacturing, and State
Nonfarm, 1982-1998
Source: Washington Employment Security Department
20.0%
Annual change in employment
15.0%
10.0%
5.0%
0.0%
-5.0%
-10.0%
1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998
Rubber & misc. plastics
Total manufacturing
State nonfarm
Similar to the national industry, rubber and miscellaneous plastics in the state is dominated by the
miscellaneous plastics subsector, which accounts for nine-tenths of the industry’s total employment.
Rubber and miscellaneous plastics in Washington is largely composed of small companies that
manufacture various rubber and plastics products. On average, each rubber and miscellaneous plastics
products establishment has about 37 employees compared with the statewide nonfarm average of 13
employees per establishment. Over 56 percent of all rubber and miscellaneous plastics products workers
are found in establishments with 100 or more employees. Statewide, three-fifths of all nonfarm workers
are employed in establishments with 100 or more employees.
Figure 4
Size of Establishments of Washington Rubber & Miscellaneous Plastics Products Industry, 1998
Source: Washington Employment Security Department
50%
Share of total employment
45%
40%
State
35%
Rubber & plastics
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
1-19
20-49
50-99
100-249
250-499
N umber of employees per establishment
Average covered wages for rubber and miscellaneous plastics products workers was $30,601 in 1998,
about 10 percent below the statewide nonfarm average of $33,922. In 1998, rubber and miscellaneous
plastics products employees’ wages and salaries ranked sixteenth among the nineteen manufacturing
industries, and substantially below the statewide manufacturing industry average at $42,247. Real (i.e.,
without inflation) wage growth has been relatively modest between 1981 and 1998.
The distribution of hourly wages for rubber and miscellaneous plastics products is dissimilar to the state,
with a pronounced disposition toward lower hourly wages. Two-thirds of all workers in the rubber and
miscellaneous plastics products industry earn between $6 and $14 per hour, compared with 44 percent of
all nonfarm workers in the state. Only 13 percent of rubber and miscellaneous plastics products industry
earn $20 or more per hour compared with 28 percent of all nonfarm workers.
Table 1
Real Average Wages: Washington Rubber & Miscellaneous Plastics Products Workers, 1981-1998 (1998
dollars)
Sources: Washington Employment Security Department, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Sector
1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1998
Misc. plastic products
$28,594 $28,840 $26,703 $25,373 $25,348 $26,559 $27,482 $28,401 $29,154 $30,596
Other rubber & misc. plastic
$28,068 $26,282 $26,495 $25,882 $24,743 $26,751 $26,336 $27,116 $30,900 $30,670
Rubber & misc. plastics
$28,539 $28,563 $26,687 $25,410 $25,309 $26,574 $27,405 $28,312 $29,262 $30,601
Manufacturing
$38,352 $37,909 $38,024 $37,876 $37,338 $37,667 $38,018 $38,942 $40,954 $42,247
Total state nonfarm
$28,783 $27,789 $27,313 $27,304 $27,167 $27,928 $28,575 $29,046 $31,504 $33,922
Figure 5
Hourly Wages for Washington Rubber & Miscellaneous Plastics Products Workers, 1997
Source: Washington Employment Security Department
25%
State
20%
Share of total employment
Rubber & plastics
15%
10%
5%
0%
<$6
$6-$8
$8-$10
$10-$12
$12-$14
$14-$16
$16-$18
$18-$20
$20-$22
$22-$24
$24-$26
>$26
Hourly wage
The labor force in the rubber and miscellaneous plastics products sector is dominated by operatives and
laborers. Common rubber and miscellaneous plastics products occupations within this group are
machinists, assemblers, laborers, and equipment and machine operators. Clerical and managerial
occupations are also important in rubber and miscellaneous plastics products.
Table 2
Occupational Profile of Rubber & Miscellaneous Plastics Products Workers in Washington, 1998 and
2008
Source: Washington Employment Security Department
Estimated 1998
Projected 2008
Rubber & plastics, SIC 30
Percent of
Percent of
Estimated
Total
Projected
Total
Employment Employment Employment Employment
Managerial & administrative
630
6.7%
847
6.9%
Professional, paraprofessional & technical
300
3.2%
388
3.2%
Sales & related occupations
397
4.2%
531
4.4%
Clerical & administrative support
893
9.5%
1,068
8.8%
Service occupations
45
0.5%
51
0.4%
Production, operating & maintenance
1,188
12.6%
1,545
12.7%
Operators, helpers & laborers
4,935
52.3%
6,319
51.8%
Undefined occupations
1,056
11.2%
1,459
12.0%
TOTAL
9,444
100.0%
12,208
100.0%
Contribution of Rubber & Plastics Industry to the Washington State Economy
Compared to the nation, the relative importance of rubber and miscellaneous plastics products to the
Washington economy is low. Although there has been steady improvement over the years, the index of
specialization for Washington rubber and miscellaneous plastics has remained well below 0.5 since 1977
(an index of 1.0 signals the same importance of an industry for Washington as for the U.S.). Since 1992,
rubber and miscellaneous plastics products’ relative importance has been just above 0.40 and not
trending upward.
Although most rubber and miscellaneous plastics products manufacturers in Washington service regional
and domestic markets, an increasing share of production is being exported to foreign customers. In
1997, rubber and miscellaneous plastics foreign exports from Washington totaled $116.8 million.
Approximately one-fourth of all rubber and miscellaneous plastics products workers are supported by
foreign exports.
Figure 6
Index of Specialization for Washington Rubber & Miscellaneous Plastics Products Industry, 1977-1997
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Gross State Product series.
1.00
0.90
0.80
Index of specialization
0.70
0.60
0.50
0.40
0.30
0.20
0.10
0.00
1969
1971
1973
1975
1977
1979
1981
1983
1985
1987
1989
1991
1993
1995
1997
Outlook
Rubber and miscellaneous plastics products has outperformed the state economy during this decade.
Employment in rubber and miscellaneous plastics products has risen at a robust 6.6 percent average
annual pace since 1991, significantly more than total nonfarm employment (3.6 percent). Domestic and
foreign end-use markets for rubber and miscellaneous plastics are expected to remain strong for the next
twenty years. The result of this bright outlook is continued expansion within the Washington rubber and
miscellaneous plastics industry. By the year 2020, rubber and miscellaneous plastics manufacturers are
forecast to employ 14,480 workers, an average annual growth rate (2000-2020) of 2.2 percent. Virtually
all of the growth is projected to occur in the miscellaneous plastics subsector, with employment growing
at an annual rate of 2.4 percent.
Figure 7
Employment Forecast for Washington Rubber & Miscellaneous Plastics Products Industry, 2000-2020
Sources: Washington Office of Financial Management, Washington Employment Security Department
16,000
Other rubber & misc. plastics
14,000
Miscellaneous plastics
12,000
Total employment
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
1995
2000
2005
2010
2015
2020