At an economic conference on Monday, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan gave a speech in which he expressed confidence that jobs lost in the last recession can be replaced. There has been concern that these manufacturing jobs have been permanently lost to low-wage countries. Greenspan reassured the American public that the U.S. economy would be able to generate enough jobs in high-skill industries to replace jobs that face the most competition from low-wage labor. He also warned that any attempt to step up protectionist measures could harm the global economy.
See "Greenspan Is Confident of Replacing Jobs", The New York Times, January 25, 2004