About Michigan Manufacturing

Manufacturing encompasses several subsectors of the Michigan economy — automotive, metals, machinery, food & beverage, plastics, rubber, bioscience, furniture, chemical products, computer and electronics, defense, etc.

Economic Impact

• Manufacturers contributed $2.33 trillion to the U.S. economy in Q1 of 2018
• Total manufacturing output in Michigan in 2017 was $96.22 billion
• Michigan manufacturers exported $56.77 billion in goods in 2017
• The average wage and benefits in manufacturing are 26.9% higher than the average of all industries
• Manufacturing’s multiplier effect – the impact an industry has on people and businesses outside the industry — is the largest in the nation with every $1 spent in manufacturing generates $1.89 in additional economic activity
• Over the past 25 years, U.S.-manufactured goods exports have quadrupled
• Manufacturers pay $19,564 per employee on average to comply with federal regulations, or nearly twice the average cost across all businesses
• According to the Department of Treasury, manufacturing employs over 11.6% of the total U.S. GDP, yet is responsible for over 60 percent of exports and 76 percent of R&D spending

Jobs Growth

• Manufacturing directly employs more than 635,700 individuals in Michigan
• Manufacturers in Michigan account for 19.2% of the state GDP — sixth highest in the nation
• Michigan’s 9.9% drop in unemployment since June 2009 is the largest improvement of any state
• Employment in Michigan’s manufacturing sector has increased by more than 205,000 jobs from June 2009 to June 2019 — an increase of 47.7 percent
• Michigan accounts for 22% of all U.S. auto-related jobs
• For every one worker in manufacturing, there are another four employees hired elsewhere

Need for Talent

• Over the next decade, nearly 3½ million manufacturing jobs will likely be needed, and 2 million are expected to go unfilled due to the skills gap
• Engineering is just one example of the high skill level required for many advanced manufacturing careers — 40% of all engineers in Michigan are employed by a manufacturer
• Women represent approximately 25% of manufacturers in Michigan