Regional Economic Trends Archive

The Trend: The Michigan Works! Southwest Region continues to recover, gaining more than 14,000 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. However, in January 2021, the unemployment rate was 1.5 percentage points higher than it had been in December 2020. An increasing labor force participation rate suggests individuals are once again looking for jobs, while an increasing employment-to-population ratio suggests that they are finding employment. Job postings were higher in January 2021 than in December 2020, with slightly more postings in Manufacturing and Public Administration.

The Trend: Branch County continues to show some growth, with an increase of over 800 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. However, between December 2020 to January 2021, the unemployment rate increased by 1.4 percentage points. It is possible that this is because individuals are once again looking for employment. An increasing labor force participation rate suggests this may be the case, while an increasing employment-to-population ratio suggests that people are finding employment. Job postings were lower in January 2021 than December 2020, with slightly fewer postings in Manufacturing and Retail Trade.

The Trend: Calhoun County continues to show strong growth, gaining over 2,000 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. However, between December 2020 to January 2021, the unemployment rate increased by 1.9 percentage points. It is possible that this is because individuals are once again looking for employment. An increasing labor force participation rate suggests this may be the case, while an increasing employment-to-population ratio suggests that people are finding employment. Job postings were higher in January 2021 than December 2020, with slightly more postings in Public Administration and Accommodation and Food Service.

The Trend: Kalamazoo County continues to rebound gaining over 7,700 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. Between December 2020 to January 2021, the unemployment rate rose by 1.4 percentage points. The rise in unemployment combined with a slightly increasing labor force participation rate from December 2020 to January 2021 suggests individuals are once again looking for jobs. However, a decreased employment to population ratio suggests that hiring may be lagging. This could be for a variety of reasons, for example, there may be a mismatch between job seekers and the skills employers need, or there may still be some barriers, such as transportation or childcare, for individuals to obtain the employment opportunities available. Unfortunately, the data available does not provide the cause for this lag. Job postings were higher in January 2021 than December 2020, with an increase in manufacturing postings.

The Trend: St. Joseph County continues to rebound gaining more than 2,000 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. Between December 2020 to January 2021, the unemployment rate rose by 1.2 percentage points. It is possible that this is because individuals are once again looking for employment. An increasing labor force participation rate suggests this may be the case, while an increasing employment-to- population ratio suggests that people are finding employment. Job postings were higher in January 2021 than in December 2020, with slightly more postings in Manufacturing.