According to Bureau of Labor Statistics information shared by the city, 230,655 city residents are employed. The last time Detroit hit that number was 2009.
The city pins the success on improved workforce training programs such as Detroit At Work, a “rebooted” Detroit Employment Solutions Corporation and a recent program to eliminate driver responsibility fees on the state level to get people their driver’s licenses back.
There also has been a run of signature projects of late, including the new and expanded FCA facilities that are rising near St. Jean and Mack.
The Detroit News says that 48,000 people when it’s all said and done will apply for 5,000 jobs available, and that even though who don’t get a job will become part of a pipeline available to other companies. Beyond the Chrysler plant, a supplier was recently announced to be taking over the old Kettering High School site.
The low point was in 2011, when just 203,734 Detroiters had jobs.
“The Mayor’s Workforce Development Board, backed by Detroit at Work and DESC, is steadily building out the workforce infrastructure we need for Detroiters,” said Executive Director of Workforce Development, Nicole Sherard-Freeman. “While we have a long way to go, we are encouraged by the number employed, and the number of Detroiters who have reconnected to the labor market because they see opportunity.”
Critics say that the massive incentives offered aren’t worth it, but the development officials also contend the math works.