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Disconnected youth is defined as the percentage of residents, age 16-19, who are neither working nor enrolled in school.   Our youth is our region's budding labor force; ensuring that they are participating in school and/or working brightens their economic future and our region's prosperity.   

Disconnected Youth

Educational attainment measures the share of the population (age 25 and older) by highest level of education awarded.  Regions with higher levels of education tend to have greater per capita income growth, as well as, a workforce that is better prepared for knowledge-based and technical jobs.    

Educational Attainment

The labor force participation rate is the percentage of people in the labor force divided by the working-age population.  (The labor force is defined as people employed plus people who are unemployed, but looking for work).  This chart shows five measures of the labor force participation rate:   overall (age 16+), prime working-age (age 25-54),  males (age 20-64), females (age 20-64), and for people with any disability (age 20-64).   Labor force participation measures how engaged the working-age population is in pursuing job opportunities.   Southeast Michigan's rates for the prime-age population and people with disabilities are especially important, as the region has lagged most major metropolitan areas.

Labor Force Participation Rates

The labor force components measure the labor supply for our region's establishments.   Labor force components break down workers into employed (people, age 16+, with a part-time or full-time job) and unemployed (people, age 16+, who are not working but are looking for a job).   People not looking for a job (e.g., full-time students, retirees, stay-at-home parents) are not part of the labor force.  Growth in the labor force provides the talent necessary to grow our region's economy.

Labor Force Components

The unemployment rate measures the percentage of workers who do not have job and are looking for work.  Generally, an unemployment rate of four percent or lower indicates an economy at full-employment, or everyone who wants a job is employed.  (At the full-employment stage, those without a job are usually transitioning between jobs, or recently entered the labor force and started looking for a job.)   Low unemployment rates, while challenging for firms, can improve wage growth and encourage new residents, looking for job opportunities, to move to our region.

Unemployment Rate

The labor force participation rate is the percentage of people in the labor force divided by the working-age population.  (The labor force is defined as people employed plus people who are unemployed, but looking for work).    This chart shows labor force participation by educational attainment for residents, age 25-64.  Residents with higher levels of education tend to have higher labor force participation rates, but it is still important to find ways to bring people with lower educational levels into the labor force.

Labor Force Participation Rates by Education

The labor force participation rate is the percentage of people in the labor force divided by the working-age population.  (The labor force is defined as people employed plus people who are unemployed, but looking for work).   This chart shows labor force participation by race for residents age 16 and older.   Note that there is not enough data to show for the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander category.    Labor force participation by race is one way to measure equity, by estimating how much our region's racial and ethnic groups are pursuing job opportunities.

Labor Force Participation Rates by Race

This chart uses 5-year American Community Survey data which is not directly comparable to the 1-year American Community Survey data.   The observation year represents that last year of the 5-year survey, for example, year 2022 represents the 5-year survey collection period of 2018-2022.   Some race categories have a small sample size, resulting in large observational variances.   For some years, data are suppressed and there is a break in the time series.

Commute mode measures the share of workers by the mode of transportation used to get to their primary job.  Changes in commute mode provides information on the types of infrastructure being utilized to get to work - including roads, carpool lanes, transit, pedestrian, and broadband.  Knowing the commute modes used by our residents helps to guide plans for building reliable and resilient infrastructure.

Talent