Last month, Congressional Democrats on the House Ways and Means Committee introduced two bills that would help boost hiring within the manufacturing sector.

Wind Powering American Jobs Act

Under the Wind Powering American Jobs Act, the production tax credit (PTC) for wind energy manufacturers would be extended through the end of next year. The PTC would provide a 2.2-cent-per-kilowatt-hour credit for wind turbine-produced electricity, which wind project developers could choose to either benefit from or receive a 30 percent investment tax credit instead.

"New wind power manufacturing jobs are already being lost, and if a PTC extension is delayed until the lame duck session, many more losses will certainly follow," said Representative Charles Rangel, a New York Democrat, in a recent statement.

Ways and Means Committee Ranking Member Sander Levin, a Michigan Democrat, underscored the need for urgency and called for the Republican party to "get to work to boost job growth."

Firms in the wind energy industry can use manufacturing management software to keep on top of the rapidly growing sector. According to the American Wind Energy Association, the industry has scaled up domestic manufacturing from just 25 percent to nearly two-thirds (60 percent).

Hire Now Act

In addition to the Wind Powering American Jobs Act, a 10 percent income tax credit for employer payroll increases would be provided through the Hire Now Act in an attempt to kickstart hiring, which has been experiencing a plateau.

Specifically, the unemployment rate (8.2 percent) changed little in May, with the number of unemployed people hovering around 12.7 million, according to figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The outlook was brighter for manufacturing employment, which continued to trend up. Following an addition of approximately 9,000 jobs in April, May saw the manufacturing workforce increase by 12,000. Overall, employment in the sector has increased by nearly 500,000 since January 2010.

The Hire Now Act would allow companies to increase their payroll in two ways - hiring additional workers or granting a salary boost to current employees. By using manufacturing accounting software, firms can make sure they are in compliance with payroll legislation, such as the aforementioned proposed law and the payroll tax extension, which was passed in February and is set to expire at the end of the year.

Click here for more about the legislation.