Home Health and Personal Care Aides Expected to Lead Employment Growth Across Michigan Through 2032

In 2024, the Michigan Center for Data and Analytics released projections for the state estimating a 0.6 percent increase in employment from 2022 to 2032. However, the pace and nature of job growth will vary across Michigan’s diverse regional economies. These differences stem from a range of factors, including population size, workforce composition, dominant industries, and the quality of local infrastructure. While this month’s feature article highlights the projected statewide and regional trends for industry sectors and occupational groups, this article highlights the top growing occupations in each prosperity region.

Home health and personal care aides is one of the top three occupations expected to add jobs in each of Michigan’s 10 prosperity regions over the decade. It ranks first in projected numerical employment growth in each area, except for the Northwest Prosperity Region, where it places second. The Metro Detroit Prosperity Region is expected to have 5,800 more Home health and personal care aides in 2032 than 2022, the largest gain of any region.

Similarly, East Central and South Central are the only two areas where Restaurant cooks do not appear on the list for top three occupations for jobs added. Metro Detroit is projected to add the most cooks among Michigan regions, with 1,790 new positions expected over the 10-year period.

Less frequent entries on the list of top growing regional jobs include occupations in maintenance, sales, and information technology. For example, while many of the top-growing occupations are projected to see consistent gains across all regions, this is not the case for Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products. Regional performance for this role varies widely. The largest increase is expected in Northwest Michigan, which is projected to add 280 positions over the decade, a 25.2 percent rise. In contrast, Metro Detroit is forecasted to lose 1,950 of these jobs, representing a 9.8 percent decline. Overall, half of Michigan’s regions are expected to see job losses in this occupation, while the other half anticipate growth.

For an overview of projected changes for Michigan’s prosperity regions between 2022 and 2032, see this month’s feature article.

Home Health and Personal Care Aides are projected to lead job growth across Michigan's prosperity regions.

Projected Job Additions by Occupation and Region, 2022-2032

Note: Data is sorted alphabetically by region, but can be sorted in other ways by clicking on column headings. 

Source: 2022-2032 Michigan Regional Long-Term Employment Projections, Michigan Center for Data and Analytics