hire was once one of the most highly industrialized states in the nation. The city of Nashua was once the booming metropolis of the production industry with more than 25 percent of the city’s population working in these factories.

What happened to all those good jobs and can anything be done to get them back?

Nashua Community College and the Nashua Labor Coalition will host a presentation by professor Marie Duggan on what happened to the production industry in New Hampshire and where the future of industry needs to head to remain competitive in the global market.

Duggan said, “1980 to 2018 has been a challenging time for industrial production in the U.S., and yet many firms in New Hampshire remain producers of precision capital goods that drive global productivity. How have these firms survived and why have the obstacles been so many?”

What role did the venture capitalists on Wall Street play in the decline of New Hampshire manufacturing? Duggan will explore the sudden decline of the U.S. machine tool sector in the 1980s.

As she discusses industrial firms that have found success in Keene, Duggan will ask the audience for local insights into how Nashua’s industry fits the schematic.

The free event is set for 6-8 p.m. Oct. 4 in the Gregg Hall Auditorium at NCC.

“For many years, New Hampshire had a robust economy built on good jobs in manufacturing facilities. However somewhere along the way that all changed,” Nashua Labor Coalition Chair Deb Howes said. “The job losses from the shuttering of these manufacturing facilities are directly related to the decline of the middle class. I am excited to hear what professor Duggan has to say about where those jobs went and what we can do to bring back these strong middle class jobs back to New Hampshire.”