Arkansas wants to produce cars instead of cotton in a 1,700-acre field near the Mississippi River, but two recent rejections by Toyota Motor Corp. have raised worries — even by the mayor — that local workers aren't up to the task.
“I think this part of the state has a disproportionate number of uneducated or undereducated residents, maybe even unmotivated,” Marion Mayor Frank Fogleman said. “I do think the workforce in this area exists that could adequately serve a Toyota-type industry, though.”
Twice since 2003, Toyota has looked hard at Marion, a town blessed with easy access to two cross-country interstate highways, four railroads, the nation's longest river and an international airport at Memphis, Tenn.
Each courtship ended with rejection, with the automaker putting an $800 million Tundra truck plant in San Antonio four years ago and announcing this spring it would build Highlander SUVs in a $1.3 billion plant near Tupelo, Miss.
Toyota didn't directly criticize Arkansas workers but praised the Tupelo work force as being “educated, ethical and friendly with a strong work ethic.” The company also accepted a $296 million incentive package from Mississippi — Arkansas offered $200 million — and said it was concerned it might aggravate an air pollution problem at Marion.
“Certainly, work force training and education are always going to be issues and we've got to make sure we have a qualified, educated work force that these people are looking for. That's always going to be an issue,” Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe said last month. “We're making progress there, but we're not where we need to be, and it depends on what part of the state.”
Statewide, Arkansas has the second-lowest rate of college graduates in the nation, 16.7 percent, and in Crittenden County — Marion is the county seat — it's 12.8 percent. At Tupelo, 26.7 percent of residents are college graduates.
“The workforce here is lazy,” said Billy Burns of Lexa, catching lunch at Big John's Shake Shack during a break from his job at an industrial tank cleaning company in Marion. “They don't want a job. All they want is a paycheck.”
In a nearby booth, Bobby Shannon disagreed.
“I don't know why anyone wouldn't want to come here,” said Shannon, a self-employed electrician. “The people here want to work. They're ready to work.”
Maria Haley, the state's economic development director, said in April the work force problem might be traced to Arkansas' tradition of having a large number of low-paying jobs on farms or in low-skill manufacturing plants. Arkansans seeking high-skill jobs, and their higher pay, have often had to leave the state.
“There has been some disappointment in the wages that have been provided and so the workforce has probably not been as high level as you would want it to be,” said Haley, director of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission.
Fogleman and Marion Economic Development Director Kay Brockwell have spent several years trying to lure Toyota and other automakers — even printing business cards in Japanese and English. Marion lured a $235 million Hino Motors Ltd. parts plant, and Hino's recently announced $70 million expansion raised spirits here.
“You know they needed some good news,” Beebe said. “They needed to know they were headed in the right direction.”
Hino created more than 600 jobs, helping boost Marion's population. There are about 10,000 residents in town, up 10 percent since 10 percent since 2000.
A day care center now provides services 24 hours a day to accommodate shift workers, and at Big John's, Japanese workers in white Hino uniforms sit in booths next to local workers wearing blue jeans and ball caps. Portraits of Elvis Presley and the singer's album covers line the walls.
Marion is located within view of the Memphis skyline, near where Interstates 40 and 55 cross the Mississippi. Urban sprawl within sight of cotton, soybean and rice fields has contributed to air pollution — but Marion has received a waiver from the federal Clean Air Act to help it attract industry.
Brockwell says she doesn't buy the argument that her city's workers aren't trained well enough for a plant, but said she thinks the city has to at least fight the perception. Many residents now cross into Memphis for work that they could be doing in Arkansas — if Arkansas had the jobs, she said.
“We've got an excellent workforce in this area that gets up every morning, drives across that bridge and works in Tennessee,” Brockwell said. “They're not driving over there because the scenery is so pretty across the Mississippi River. They're driving over there because that's where the jobs are.”
The average American College Test composite score among Marion students was 20.7 last year, slightly lower than the state average of 20.9. The national average is 21.1.
“Do I think we have a work force problem? No, I do not,” Brockwell said. “Do I think we have a perception of a work force problem? Yes, I do.”
She also notes the efforts of the Mid South Community College in nearby West Memphis, where school officials are touting a new $7 million workforce technology center to train potential employers to work in the auto industry.
College President Glen Fenter said the number of workers who are driving across state lines show the competitive nature of the region and should show potential employers that a motivated work force does exist in the Delta.
“Educating and training a workforce is going to be an issue everywhere,” Fenter said. “I don't think we have any more of an issue here than you have in any place in the country.”
Fogleman said he believes the state needs to continue pushing for a major project such as an auto plant, but said Marion may also need to set its sights on smaller prey such as new stores and restaurants. In the past month, Marion officials attended a retail convention with the hope of attracting retailers.
“We're certainly not going to ignore the big fish,” Fogleman said. “You can go fishing for a whale forever and never catch it, but you can also go fishing for the small fish and you're going to have better results. Maybe we didn't focus enough on the small fish between '02 and '07.”
