Businesses fight the exodus out of state
State business organizations mull strategies to convince talented grads to stay in Michigan
Michael Mayday
Issue date: 1/22/09 Section: Beyond
Upcoming college graduates have already begun their search for jobs, but most are looking to move out of Michigan, despite the efforts of companies trying to keep students in state.
Many departing students say finding a job in Michigan is simply too hard.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, for the past five years, Michigan has averaged a 7 percent unemployment rate. 2008, however, saw a sharp rise to 9.6 percent, making it the state with the highest unemployment rate in the nation (see related story by Joy Pavelski in this page).
Faced with the tough economy, Michiganders are leaving.
According to United Van Lines, a moving company that monitors traffic between states, Michigan is losing residents, and students, with 67.1 percent of interstate moves going elsewhere - making Michigan the No. 1 state in outbound migration.
Meanwhile, business organizations struggle to beat the harsh economic conditions and keep the most talented Michigan youth in the state.
Gary Wolfram, a Hillsdale College economics professor, puts the blame on misplaced public policy. He claims high taxes and high regulation drives up the prices of produce in the state.
"The problem is the legislature's response is not to reduce the cost of doing business overall in Michigan, but to reduce the cost to specific industries, like the movie industry, rather than reducing the taxes on all industries, and allowing the market to determine which industry is going to be economically efficient," Wolfram said.
In 2008 Detroit Renaissance, an organization advocating economic reform in the greater Detroit area, pushed for restructuring Medicaid, reducing corrections policies and reducing state government employee benefits in an effort to correct the economic climate.
The dwindling businesses find it hard to hire, and even those who want to stay in the state struggle to.
"I think the difficulty is just the fact that we're having such a tough time here in Michigan, with the auto industry and things in general," said Kirsten Ussery, Communications director at Detroit Renaissance.
Many departing students say finding a job in Michigan is simply too hard.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, for the past five years, Michigan has averaged a 7 percent unemployment rate. 2008, however, saw a sharp rise to 9.6 percent, making it the state with the highest unemployment rate in the nation (see related story by Joy Pavelski in this page).
Faced with the tough economy, Michiganders are leaving.
According to United Van Lines, a moving company that monitors traffic between states, Michigan is losing residents, and students, with 67.1 percent of interstate moves going elsewhere - making Michigan the No. 1 state in outbound migration.
Meanwhile, business organizations struggle to beat the harsh economic conditions and keep the most talented Michigan youth in the state.
Gary Wolfram, a Hillsdale College economics professor, puts the blame on misplaced public policy. He claims high taxes and high regulation drives up the prices of produce in the state.
"The problem is the legislature's response is not to reduce the cost of doing business overall in Michigan, but to reduce the cost to specific industries, like the movie industry, rather than reducing the taxes on all industries, and allowing the market to determine which industry is going to be economically efficient," Wolfram said.
In 2008 Detroit Renaissance, an organization advocating economic reform in the greater Detroit area, pushed for restructuring Medicaid, reducing corrections policies and reducing state government employee benefits in an effort to correct the economic climate.
The dwindling businesses find it hard to hire, and even those who want to stay in the state struggle to.
"I think the difficulty is just the fact that we're having such a tough time here in Michigan, with the auto industry and things in general," said Kirsten Ussery, Communications director at Detroit Renaissance.
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