Business & Tech

Oakland County October Jobless Rate Dips to Lowest Point Since Recession Began

Automation Alley, Medical Main Street and Emerging Sectors are helping the county recover from a brutal recession that hit Michigan and the Detroit metro, he hub of the U.S. auto industry, especially hard.

Oakland County’s October non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was at its lowest point – 7.8 percent– since 2008 as the county continues to outperform other counties in the region and state.

That’s a significant improvement from the same period four years ago, when unemployment skyrocketed to 14 percent. Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson credited county-led efforts to diversify and move away from the automotive industry, particularly hard hit in the most severe recession since the Great Depression.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ most recent report, the Detroit MSA was 9 percent and the State of Michigan was 8.3 percent in October.The Oakland County rate was only slightly higher than the national average – 7.3 percent– for the same period.

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Patterson said the numbers validate the county’s economic diversification efforts in the knowledge-based economy through initiatives such as Emerging Sectors, Medical Main Street and Automation Alley.

“I think that’s great news,” Patterson said. “It shows our programs are working and we intend to pour it on.”

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The last few October jobless rates in Oakland County were:

  • 9.0 percent in 2012
  • 9.5 percent in 2011
  • 11.6 percent in 2010
  • 14.0 percent in 2009
  • 7.6 percent in 2008

In an effort to diversify the economy, Patterson launched Oakland County's Emerging Sectors initiative in 2004 to identify the top 10 sectors that will attract and retain sustainable, high-paying jobs to the region in the 21st century.

Companies in these emerging sectors are involved in such leading-edge fields such as advanced electronics and controls, advanced materials and chemicals, communications and information technology, and robotics & automation, and Oakland County's Medical Main Street.

Since the program’s inception, 253 companies have invested $2.6 billion creating 29,825 jobs and retaining 13,828. More information about the Emerging Sectors is found at AdvantageOakland.com.


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