NHQI December 2019
Upjohn Institute New Hires Quality Index drops sharply in December 2019, giving up gains for year, as older workers continue to grow as share of new hires
NHQI May 2023
Upjohn Institute New Hires Quality Index gains 0.2 percent in May 2023, but hiring volume continues to slow, dipping 0.4 percent
St. Joseph County December 2021
Kalamazoo Coounty December 2021
Calhoun County December 2021
Branch County December 2021
NQHI November 2021
Upjohn Institute New Hires Quality Index for November 2021 slips 0.1 percent, but workers age 65-plus continue to take new jobs at historically high rates
NHQI August 2023
Upjohn Institute New Hires Quality Index dips slightly in August 2023, with cooling felt equally for women and men
NHQI May 2021
Upjohn Institute New Hires Quality Index for May 2021 holds steady, but public sector hiring—including education—is not keeping up
St. Joseph County April 2021
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.
NHQI December 2023
Upjohn Institute New Hires Quality Index drops for fifth consecutive month, with volume also slipping and metros losing some (but not much) ground to rural areas
NHQI July 2023
Upjohn Institute New Hires Quality Index hits another new high for July 2023, plus special Labor Day look at actual real wage growth
Branch County May 2021
The Trend: Branch County continues to show some growth, with an increase of more than 800 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. Between January 2021 and February 2021, the unemployment rate decreased by 1.1 percentage points. However, this may not be a positive sign, as both the employment-to-population ratio and the labor force participation rate also decreased from January 2021 to February 2021. Job postings were lower in February 2021 than in January 2021, with slightly fewer postings in Health Care and Social Assistance and in Retail Trade.
Michigan Works! Southwest Region May 2021
The Trend: The Michigan Works! Southwest Region continues to recover, having gained more than 14,000 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. Between January 2021 and February 2021, the unemployment rate decreased by 0.9 percentage points. However, this may not be a positive sign, as the employment-to-population ratio and labor force participation rate remained the same from January 2021 to February 2021. Job postings were lower in February 2021 than in January 2021, with slightly fewer postings in Health Care and Social Assistance and in Manufacturing.
NHQI April 2021
Upjohn Institute New Hires Quality Index for April 2021 slips slightly from March, as foreign-born workers’ recovery catches up with that of native-born
St. Joseph County June 2021
The Trend: St. Joseph County continues to rebound, gaining more than 2,000 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. Between February and March 2021, the unemployment rate decreased, while the employment-to-population ratio and the labor force participation rate increased. This is likely a positive sign that individuals are finding employment. Job postings were higher in March than in February, as there were slightly more postings in Manufacturing and Health Care and Social Assistance.
Kalamazoo County June 2021
The Trend: Kalamazoo County continues to rebound, gaining more than 7,700 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. However, between February and March 2021, there was functionally no change within the labor force in the county. Exactly why is difficult to determine, as there may be several things causing this failure to move the needle. One notable issue has been that employers reportedly are having difficulty in finding workers, but the cause for these reported labor shortages remains unclear. Job postings were higher in March than in February, as there were slightly more postings in Health Care and Social Assistance and Manufacturing.
Calhoun County June 2021
The Trend: Calhoun County continues to show strong growth, gaining more than 2,000 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. Between February and March 2021, the unemployment rate decreased, while the employment-to-population ratio and the labor force participation rate increased. This is likely a positive sign that individuals are finding employment. Job postings were higher in March than in February as there were more postings in Manufacturing and Accommodation and Food Services.
Branch County June 2021
The Trend: Branch County continues to show some growth, with an increase of more than 800 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. Between February and March 2021, both the unemployment rate and the labor force participation rate increased, suggesting growth in the total labor force. An increase in the employment-to-population ratio from February to March suggests that job seekers are likely finding work. Job postings were lower in March than in February as there were slightly fewer postings in Health Care and Social Assistance, Retail Trade, and Manufacturing.
Michigan Works! Southwest Region June 2021
The Trend: The Michigan Works! Southwest Region continues to recover, gaining more than 14,000 jobs from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020. Between February and March 2021, the unemployment rate remained the same, while the labor force participation rate and the employment-to-population ratio both increased. This may be a positive sign, indicating that individuals are quickly finding work. Job postings were higher in March than in February as there were slightly more postings in Health Care and Social Assistance and Manufacturing.