Profile: Industry Trends

Figure 1: Employment by Industry, 2022

Employment by Industry Detroit Region 2022

The Detroit region employs over 2.3 million people in industries spread across 11 counties. The primary industries in the Detroit region are:

Between 2012 and 2022, all Detroit industries except Information and Government experienced growth. The fastest growing sectors by employment during this 10-year period were Construction (44.8%), Natural Resources and Mining (44.5%), and Financial Activities (16.5%). The Natural Resources and Mining, Construction, Manufacturing, and Financial Activities sectors in the Detroit region grew faster than the national average (53.3, 6.8, 4.2, and 1.9 percentage points, respectively). The Professional and Business Services industry grew slower than the national average by 16.5 percentage points.

Figure 2: Employment by County, 2022

Employment by County Detroit Region 2022

Most employment in the Detroit region is concentrated across five major counties, though the combined employment in the less dense counties is also significant. Oakland County leads with 717,269 jobs and 31% of regional employment. Wayne County is nearly equivalent, with 714,597 jobs and 31% of regional employment. The next largest counties by employment are Macomb County with 14% of regional jobs, Washtenaw County with 9%, and Genesee County with 6%.

Employment declined in Lenawee County (-4.4%), Shiawassee County (-5%), and St. Clair County (-5%) between 2012 and 2022. These job losses were compensated for by employment growth in the remaining counties. By growth rate, employment increases were largest in Livingston County (29.7%), Macomb County (14.3%), Washtenaw County (9.8%), and Oakland County (8.6%).

The largest increases in raw employment were in Oakland County and Macomb County, adding 56,706 and 41,053 jobs respectively.

Figure 3: Employment by County, Total % Growth, 2012-2022

Growth in Employment by County Detriot Region 2022