Michigan Unemployment by County: What FRED Data Shows

Michigan Signals pulls county unemployment data from FRED (the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis's economic database), which aggregates data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Here is how to read these numbers and what they mean for Michigan communities.

What BLS County Unemployment Data Measures

The Bureau of Labor Statistics produces county-level unemployment estimates through its Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program. LAUS data reflects the standard U-3 unemployment rate: the share of the labor force that is unemployed and actively looking for work.

This is not the same as:

• The share of working-age adults who aren't working (which would also include people who aren't looking)
• The underemployment rate (U-6), which counts people working part-time who want full-time work
• A count of people receiving unemployment benefits (which is an administrative measure, not a survey-based one)

The distinction matters. A county where many residents have stopped looking for work may show a low unemployment rate even though economic conditions are poor. Labor force participation rate, which Michigan Signals also tracks, gives a more complete picture.

County-by-County Variation in Michigan

Michigan's county unemployment rates vary significantly and follow predictable patterns. Counties with large manufacturing employment bases, particularly auto-sector dependent communities, tend to see larger swings during economic downturns. Rural counties with limited employer diversity often run higher structural unemployment than the state average.

Metro-area counties (Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Kent, Washtenaw) typically track closer to national unemployment trends. Smaller, rural, or single-industry counties can diverge substantially.

The 2020 COVID-19 shock was visible across all Michigan counties, though urban counties with more hospitality and retail employment saw sharper short-term spikes. Recovery timelines also differed by county.

Seasonal Patterns

BLS releases both seasonally adjusted and not seasonally adjusted county unemployment figures. Michigan Signals currently tracks not seasonally adjusted monthly figures from FRED, which means you'll see predictable seasonal patterns: higher unemployment in winter months (particularly in counties with significant agricultural or seasonal employment), lower in summer.

When comparing year-over-year, always compare the same month: January to January, not January to July.

Reading the Trend Line

Michigan Signals displays an 8-year unemployment rate history for each county, covering 2015 through 2022 (the range where complete county data is available from BLS via FRED). The trend line shows the annual average unemployment rate for each year.

Key moments visible in the data for most Michigan counties:

• A declining trend from 2015 through 2019 as the labor market tightened post-Great Recession
• A sharp spike in 2020 from COVID-19 disruption
• Rapid recovery through 2021–2022, with most counties returning near pre-pandemic levels

Data Sources

• FRED (Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis): Aggregates BLS LAUS county unemployment data via the FRED API. Series IDs follow the format MIXXXXXXURN for Michigan county unemployment rates.
• Bureau of Labor Statistics LAUS: Primary source. Monthly county-level unemployment estimates using a combination of CPS survey data, Current Employment Statistics (CES), unemployment insurance data, and Census Bureau decennial counts.