Detroit Has 5th Best Job Market In Country -- So What's Next?
DETROIT (Talk Radio 1270) When news broke that Detroit has the fifth best job market in the country, many were shaking their heads: Detroit, really?
Yes, really.
After years of declining manufacturing jobs and unemployment numbers that outpaced the rest of the country, Michigan's economic outlook is on a serious upswing, according to Regional Director of Manpower Inc. Eric Jones. Jones visited the Charlie Langton Talk Radio 1270 morning show to explain what's really going on.
"Twenty-seven percent of companies are reporting here in metro Detroit that they plan to hire, while only 5 percent are planning to reduce staff," Jones said. "I know it's surprising, but that's what the companies we surveyed out there told us."
What are the best jobs fields? Construction and manufacturing, Jones said.
"Definitely the rebound here in metro Detroit has been fueled by the auto markets ... It has been what pulled us out," he said. "Really, any automotive company that survived is thriving at this point just based on so much competition going out of the market."
So does the emergency manager battle in Detroit, lawsuits, city and county corruption allegations, and municipal leader in-fighting hurt the region's job market? Yes, Jones said.
"I think that that hurts our image and that can never help," he told Langton. "We deal with a lot of companies that are doing searches for where they want to open their company, employment demographics ... is such a big part of where companies decide to locate and when you have that negative association with your region, that hurts."
But there's an even bigger issue, he said.
"The biggest issue here in education," Jones said, adding that metro Detroit ranks 65 out of 100 in terms of population with a college degree. Only 27 percent of metro Detroiters have an associate's degree or higher, he said.
"That's what wins out when companies decide to relocate ... I'm definitely concerned long-term for our economic outlook if we don't improve that," Jones said.
He said government also needs to focus on training people for skilled trades and other certificate-based jobs where "there's a real skill gap or talent gap."
Parents worried about new graduates who aren't college-bound should get them involved in skilled trades.
"Definitely, skilled trades can be a great career and a nice-paying job as well," Jones said.
