Michigan Unemployment Rate Slow To Recover

Michigan has the third worst unemployment recovery in the country, with little relief on the horizon.

With states opening up and the national unemployment rate now at 13.3% compared to the nearly historic high of 14.7% at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, WalletHub today released its report on the States Whose Unemployment Rates Are Bouncing Back Most, to illustrate which areas of the country have had the best recovery so far.

This report examines unemployment rates on a monthly basis, complementing the weekly analysis in WalletHub’s report on the States Whose Unemployment Claims Are Recovering the Quickest.

Michigan has the third slowest recovery rate, using metrics such as change in unemployment this year to last year and current unemployment rates.

While Michigan has done very well up until this point containing the virus, the recovery has been slow due to citizens reluctant to jump right back into the swing of things. There has been some positive upticks in the economy since some businesses have reopened, but as you can tell from the statistics below, unemployment continues to be high.

The good news? Some new industries like marijuana growing are now hiring, and some service industries who lost employees during the shut down are hiring as well.

Unemployment Recovery in Michigan (1=Most Recovered, 25=Avg.):

• 433.80% Change in Unemployment (May 2020 vs May 2019)
  • 985,423 unemployed people in May 2020 vs 184,604 in May 2019;
  • 5th worst recovery in the U.S.
• 367.53% Change in Unemployment (May 2020 vs January 2020)
  • 985,423 unemployed people in May 2020 vs 210,771 in January 2020;
  • 3rd worst recovery in the U.S.
• 2,321.17% Change in Not Seasonally Adjusted Continued Claims (May 2020 vs May 2019)
  • 985,294 continued claims in May 2020 vs 40,695 in May 2019
  • 6th worst recovery in the U.S.
• 20.70% Unemployment Rate (May 2020)
  • 3rd worst recovery in the U.S.