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Rick Haglund: Mich. automakers need more talent to fend off competitors in coming EV era
The Motor City’s foundations shook a bit earlier this month when news broke that Japanese automaker Toyota blew by General Motors to become the top-selling manufacturer in the United States last year. It was the first time an auto company not named GM led annual U.S. car and truck sales in 90 years. That a […]
Rick Haglund: Rising prices aren’t slowing Michigan’s economic recovery. But omicron might.
Michigan’s economy is in shambles, the Michigan Republican Party would like you to think. The GOP’s key data point? Detroit-based Little Caesars has raised the price of its $5 Hot-N-Ready pizza by a whopping 55 cents, the first such price increase in 25 years. Michigan GOP spokesman Gustavo Portela blamed the price hike on “[President] […]
Rick Haglund: Will Michigan’s big tax incentive bet pay off in new auto jobs?
Michigan’s new economic development incentives, mostly designed to help Michigan better compete with other states for new electric vehicle assembly and battery plans, remind me of a hilarious scene in the 1996 hit movie, “Jerry McGuire.” McGuire, a sports agent played by Tom Cruise, is desperate to keep pro football client Rod Tidwell, portrayed by […]
Rick Haglund: Republican Kevin Rinke’s hot rod gubernatorial campaign may not have the juice
Kevin Rinke has grabbed my attention like none of the other 11 Republican candidates seeking the governor’s office next year. It’s not because of his qualifications, which I have not been able to discern. And it’s not because of his policy positions, which are pretty much the same culture-war talking points and manufactured issues his […]
Rick Haglund: When in-demand talent can work from anywhere, what will happen to Michigan?
Alarmed that Michigan was losing too many young college graduates to Chicago, New York, San Francisco and other talent magnets, then-Gov. Jennifer Granholm decided to try a new approach to economic development in the early 2000s. She took notice of the radical notion, presented in urbanist Richard Florida’s groundbreaking 2002 book, “The Rise of the […]
Rick Haglund: After Ford’s investment in Tenn., here’s how Michigan can attract new auto jobs
Local economic developers, business leaders and some state lawmakers are freaking out over plans by home team player Ford Motor Co. to make the biggest manufacturing investments in its history in Kentucky and Tennessee. Unless you’ve been locked inside a Tesla with a dead battery for the past month, you’re no doubt aware that Ford […]
Rick Haglund: Biden says clean energy will create union jobs. But companies may have other ideas.
During a visit to a union training center in Howell on Tuesday, President Joe Biden touted his ambitious vision for a clean energy future. Biden is pushing for multi-trillion dollar government investments in, among many other things, a massive shift from gasoline-powered cars to electric vehicles. “I want those jobs here in Michigan, not halfway […]
Rick Haglund: While Republicans blast Biden’s vaccine mandate, some companies are embracing it
Patrick O’Keefe is a Bloomfield Hills business consultant who’s recognized as an expert in “strategic advisory services,” according to a lengthy biography on his company’s website. But he offered some lousy counsel recently in his role as a Michigan State University trustee. O’Keefe, a Republican who was elected to the MSU board last November, spoke […]
Rick Haglund: Census shows Michigan is still losing the race to attract young talent
Alarm bells should be ringing in the heads of state policymakers over Michigan’s latest census figures. Why, you ask? At first glance, the numbers look pretty good. The 2020 census, released earlier this month, shows Michigan has 10,077,331 residents. That’s the first time the state has cracked the 10 million mark since 2008. Many of […]
Rick Haglund: Can Michigan grow its ‘blue economy’ while facing fallout from climate change?
A 2015 study exploring Michigan’s “blue economy” forecast a prosperous future in which Michigan’s enormous water resources would serve as the catalyst for thousands of high-paying new jobs as the state becomes the world’s “freshwater innovation capital.” “One hundred years after launching the industrial revolution, we look to a new green-blue revolution consisting of sustainable […]
Rick Haglund: Michigan continues to underinvest in higher education, in good times and bad
Last week, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed a record $17.1 billion K-12 spending bill that eliminates a nearly 30-year-long basic state funding gap between school districts and gives educators the resources they say they need to improve student performance. But at a time when most new jobs paying a living wage require a certificate or degree […]
Rick Haglund: How COVID-19 was a ‘giant sledgehammer’ to the labor market
Twenty-six states, all run by Republican governors, are trying to force workers laid off in the devastating COVID-19 pandemic back to work by cutting off the $300 per week in enhanced federal jobless benefits they’ve been receiving. Pushed by employers who contend the extra cash makes it more lucrative for workers to stay home than […]