Report: Southeastern Michigan to Add 7,500 Middle-Skill Jobs by 2019

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By 2019, southeastern Michigan employers will add more than 7,500 new jobs that require training beyond high school but do not require a bachelor’s degree, says a new report released today by Workforce Intelligence Network, a collaborative between nine community colleges and Michigan Works! agencies.

“Projections show that over the next five years there will be no aggregate growth in employment for jobs that solely require a high school diploma or less, establishing a clear need for additional training and/or education after high school to be a competitive worker in today’s job market,” says Lisa Katz, executive director of the Workforce Intelligence Network.

Jobs that require additional training beyond high school but don’t require a four-year degree and pay more than $15 an hour, called middle-skill jobs, include such professions as truck drivers, computer support specialists, web developers, and medical record technicians, among others. The top cities in southeastern Michigan for middle-skills jobs include Ann Arbor, Detroit, Flint, Southfield, and Troy.

The report found demand for jobs that require only a high school diploma will decrease in the next five years, while jobs in southeastern Michigan that require post-secondary education are expected to grow by 20,000 positions. The report also projects 37 percent of total job growth will be in middle-skill jobs.

While training is available for most middle-skill jobs at Michigan’s community colleges, the report found some of the positions were not filled due to a lack of supply. In-demand middle-skill jobs include chemical technicians, physical therapist assistants, and paralegals, among others.

To view the full report, visit Win-SEMich.org/data-research/working-smarter-special-report-series/