Jay Bavers and Glenna Haney labor in a small studio in the Northern Michigan community of East Jordan. But their blown-glass creations have garnered fans from Lansing to Siberia. Jordan Valley Glassworks, which Bavers and Haney co-own, is a business built on the desire to present the new or unique, but also to satisfy the […]
Business Watch
Covering the intersection of business and policy, and informing Michigan employers and workers on the long road back from coronavirus. Our Michigan Economic Dashboard shows key metrics that show how the state is performing.
Posted inBusiness Watch
What you need to know about Legislature's 'lame-duck' session
A post-election headline in Bridge summarized expectations for an “active” “lame duck” session of the Legislature. We didn’t know the half of it. Ending at 4:30 a.m. last Friday, the Michigan Legislature passed almost 300 bills in the holiday season, including fundamental changes in how Michigan handles unions, business taxes, abortion regulation, welfare limits and even […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Factory work drives slow Mich. recovery
If there’s one thing we’ve always been able to count on in Michigan, it’s that manufacturing will drag us into recession and lead us back to recovery. And it’s happening again. Durable goods manufacturing output has jumped 41 percent in the past two years, far outpacing any other segment of the economy since 2009. The […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Construction industry sees more work, more jobs on Michigan’s horizon
No industry contracted more during Michigan’s “lost decade” than construction. The value of new construction, including homes, offices, factories, hospitals and schools, fell by more than half, from $21 billion in 2001 to $9.2 billion last year, as measured by state gross domestic product. During the same period, Michigan lost 82,000 construction jobs, a 40 […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Health sector surges, but Michigan economy still faces educational drags
Manufacturing is still the engine driving Michigan’s economy, but several other industry segments are fighting to grab the steering wheel. Health care; finance and insurance; professional, scientific and technical services; management of companies; wholesale trade; and lodging and food service all have shown near or above double-digit growth of the past two years as measured […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
RTW law and referendum just won’t mix
Michigan is one of 24 states where the public can pass judgment on the work of their elected representatives via the power of referendum. But just as Superman’s foes found kryptonite could neutralize him, Michigan legislators have found their way to neutralize the referendum. The majorities backing Right to Work legislation included a $1 million […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Right to Work bills won't touch State Police
Thousands of union workers converged on Lansing Tuesday to protest the passage of Right to Work legislation. They stood on a Capitol grounds well-populated with Michigan State Police troopers – troopers who, ironically, are not only unionized themselves, but insulated from the current debate due to a constitutional provision. A spokesman for MSP declined Tuesday […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Right to Work bills revamp how courts handle challenges to them
In September, an Ingham County Circuit Court judge ruled against a state law backed by Gov. Rick Snyder and the Republican legislative majority to require state employees to make an additional payment to their pension plan. It’s not the first time that an Ingham County judge has ruled against the state as part of that […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Is Michigan too light on tax lures?
How many economic development incentives does Michigan need to compete for jobs and business investment? A debate is raging over that question since Gov. Rick Snyder largely shifted the state’s economic development efforts away from trying to buy jobs from other states to helping Michigan companies grow, a process he calls “economic gardening.” Soon after […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Business recruiters watch changes in Michigan incentives with concern
Local economic developers say they’re worried that Michigan isn’t spending enough on incentives to compete in the increasingly expensive fight among the states for jobs and business investment. Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration has ended the state’s practice of handing out expensive business tax credits, which cost the state nearly $1 billion a year, in favor […]