Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Note: An index year of 2018 means that labor force numbers were set equal to 100 in 2018, and percent changes were calculated from there.
Manufacturing is one of the state’s largest industry sectors and employed 582,700 workers in 2025, accounting for more than 15 percent of private employment. From 2018 through 2025, Manufacturing employment in Michigan declined by 7.1 percent compared to a 1 percent expansion across all sectors statewide. Manufacturing experienced a significant drop in employment of 11.3 percent in 2020 during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, 1.7 percentage points greater than the decline in statewide employment. While statewide employment recovered by 2023, Manufacturing employment did not recover to pre-pandemic levels and has decreased each year since 2023.