Metro Detroit unemployment rate rises to 5.4% in August as labor force shrinks by 10,000
Metro Detroit's unemployment rate rose to 5.4% in August 2026 from July, while local employers reported fewer jobs on their payrolls and the region's labor force fell, federal data show.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the metro area's seasonally adjusted jobless rate rose from the prior month. The local rate was above the national unemployment rate of 4.1% in August.
State workforce data released with the federal figures show the region's labor force fell by 10,000 people between July and August. Employment fell by 11,000, and the number of people counted as unemployed rose by 1,000.
The August figures show job growth in the Detroit area has slowed and fewer residents are in the labor force compared with earlier in the year. Employment fell more than the labor force, and the unemployed count rose.
Local employers reduced payrolls in August. The gap between Detroit's unemployment rate and the national average widened. The region's jobless rate has been above the U.S. average for much of the past year, and the latest figures continued that difference.
Michigan's statewide unemployment data for September is scheduled for release Thursday. The update will include September figures for Metro Detroit.
The report uses data from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics program, a federal-state partnership that tracks employment and unemployment at the metro, county, and city level. Figures are seasonally adjusted to account for routine hiring patterns tied to school calendars, summer work, and other recurring shifts.
September's report is due Thursday.
