LEO has up to $150,000 available to fund up to three (3) regional partnership networks across the state with grants that support K-12 partnership, engagement, and planning with employers in their local manufacturing ecosystem. Each grant will act as seed funding to offset startup costs associated with coordinating and managing regional partnerships. Applications for funding are due by Friday, July 10, 2026, at 5 p.m. EDT. An informational webinar will take place on Tuesday, June 16 at 1 p.m. EDT.
Learn more about the RFP
The MI Auto Workforce Hub is focused on uniting and empowering communities and businesses to strengthen local workforces for a resilient future! The Hub was established to integrate partners and existing auto industry workforce efforts into a comprehensive, statewide collaboration engine that has a place at the table for every stakeholder.
Identifying skills needs and industry trends and providing industry insights.
Advocating for workers and high-quality jobs, ensuring inclusive participation, and providing training and support services.
Developing and delivering relevant curricula and conducting research.
Conducting research on auto industry transitions and workforce trends to inform action.
Providing workforce development insights, conducting outreach, and providing support and resources.
Michigan Department of Labor & Economic Opportunity
Coordinating efforts, providing regulatory and policy support, and providing funding for projects where applicable.
Convene Michigan automotive workforce stakeholders to identify shared problems and develop stakeholder-informed, consensus-based solutions that build and sustain a robust automotive workforce in Michigan.
Every Michigander has equitable access to high-quality training, education and services that lead to fulfilling automotive industry careers in their own community.
The MI Auto Workforce Hub is organized into active, goal-centered workgroups, each focused on identifying and implementing strategies to build a robust, inclusive and resilient workforce for Michigan’s automotive sector. Rather than taking a top-down approach, the Hub fosters stakeholder collaboration to ensure solutions are shaped by those closest to workforce needs and opportunities.
MI Auto Workforce Hub has an action-driven strategy to produce outcomes that empower communities, employers and workers and enhance Michigan's automotive workforce system at the local level.
The Data & Coordination workgroup has developed the Michigan Auto Workforce Transition Report that documents expected occupational growth and skills needs for auto employers in the state. This report is intended to serve as a shared data source to guide partners as they plan for Michigan's evolving automotive workforce needs.
The Structural Barriers workgroup developed the Reliable Rides: Connecting Workers to Jobs playbook that contains best practices and a step-by-step guide for employers to launch custom transportation programs for their workforce.
This workgroup recognizes MiLEAP’s leadership in addressing child care barriers, and interested Hub partners participate in Regional Child Care Planning Coalitions to help expand the regional child care supply and better meet families’ needs.
This Training, Curriculum, & Career Readiness workgroup is undertaking the Skills in Sync: Strengthening K-12 and Manufacturing Partnerships initiative. Through roundtables, targeted interviews, partnership pilots, and a statewide resource, this initiative ultimately aims to improve student outcomes by increasing awareness, access, and readiness for high-quality career pathways. Explore early findings from this work in the Skills in Sync: Partnership Insights Snapshot.
Michigan’s auto industry is entering a major transition as electrification, advanced manufacturing, and new battery supply chains reshape work across the sector.
This report brings together analysis from the Upjohn Institute, the Center for Automotive Research, and the Centrepolis Accelerator to outline the most significant workforce shifts underway and the strategies that can help Michigan remain the nation’s automotive workforce capital.
If you’ve ever lost a good worker because they couldn’t keep a reliable ride, you’re not alone. Employers of every size are facing the same challenge.
The difference? Some are taking small, smart steps to make transportation part of their retention strategy — and they’re saving money while widening their hiring pool, saving on hiring and training costs, and realizing higher uptime as a result.
If you’d like to learn more about the MI Auto Workforce Hub and its workgroups, subscribe to our monthly newsletter.
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MI Auto Workforce Hub convenes virtually every quarter. Interested in getting involved?
Email the MI Auto Workforce Hub team