Policy and Legal

Des Moines, IA / Washington, D.C. – On Tuesday, June 9, Iowa Association of Business and Industry President Mike Ralston and National Association of Manufacturers President and CEO Jay Timmons called for thoughtful liability protections to ensure the manufacturing industry can continue to drive the renewal of America’s economy. The organizations support policymakers’ efforts in Des Moines and Washington, D.C., to protect manufacturers from baseless bad-faith COVID-19 lawsuits.

In April, the NAM released its “American Renewal Action Plan,” which provides a comprehensive list of policy recommendations to guide the country through the stages of response, recovery and renewal. This plan includes a comprehensive set of pandemic liability policy recommendations.

“Everyone wants to get the economy open in a way that protects Americans’ health and well-being, which is why manufacturers have been leading the way to protect their workplaces and safeguard employees. Throughout this crisis, manufacturers have been working to do the right thing, providing vital supplies and essential products. Letting manufacturers now become the target of inappropriate lawsuits will stall our economic recovery,” said Timmons. “Iowa leaders can prevent this. Smart liability protections will ensure manufacturers can continue leading—and get more Iowans back to work.”

“Iowa manufacturers and their employees have been hard at work throughout this pandemic, doing all they can to keep themselves and Iowans healthy and to keep the economy moving.  To now have them be the victims of improper legal action is simply wrong. ABI calls on Iowa legislators to act on this issue important to manufacturers and all Iowa businesses,” said Ralston.

More information can be found at https://nam.org/liability.

-NAM-

The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs nearly 11.7 million men and women, contributes $2.38 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic multiplier of any major sector and accounts for 63% of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org.

-ABI-

The Iowa Association of Business and Industry (ABI) has been the voice of Iowa business since 1903. Its mission is to provide a strong, unified voice to business and industry on issues affecting Iowa employers. ABI is comprised of 1,500 member companies of all types and sizes in all 99 counties employing more than 330,000 Iowans.