East_detroit Member Username: East_detroit
Post Number: 1238 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Monday, November 05, 2007 - 4:59 pm: | |
LARGEST METRO DETROIT EMPLOYERS Company Metro employees Jan. 2007 1. Ford Motor Co. 55,342 2. General Motors Corp. 41,861 3. Chrysler L.L.C. 32,597 4. Detroit Public Schools 17,329 5. University of Michigan 16,832 Proof also that Ann Arbor is a part of Metro Detroit (and hence a suburb). |
East_detroit Member Username: East_detroit
Post Number: 1239 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Monday, November 05, 2007 - 5:00 pm: | |
From Crain's Detroit Business online. |
Raptor56 Member Username: Raptor56
Post Number: 154 Registered: 05-2007
| Posted on Monday, November 05, 2007 - 5:08 pm: | |
interesting. Top 3 are no brainers. didn't realise DPS was so big |
Detroitrise Member Username: Detroitrise
Post Number: 438 Registered: 09-2007
| Posted on Monday, November 05, 2007 - 9:27 pm: | |
That goes to show you that our economy is crap in so many ways. |
Zephyrprocess Member Username: Zephyrprocess
Post Number: 520 Registered: 08-2006
| Posted on Monday, November 05, 2007 - 9:58 pm: | |
Recognizing that DPS is the largest employer in the city explains why it's run like a patronage. |
Andylinn Member Username: Andylinn
Post Number: 624 Registered: 04-2006
| Posted on Tuesday, November 06, 2007 - 12:46 am: | |
technically DPS is the second largest employer in the city, if you're talking about being "based" in the city... but maybe largest employer of city residents? |
Hudkina Member Username: Hudkina
Post Number: 72 Registered: 12-2004
| Posted on Tuesday, November 06, 2007 - 3:15 am: | |
Ann Arbor is a satellite of Detroit not a suburb. |
Yelloweyes Member Username: Yelloweyes
Post Number: 203 Registered: 02-2007
| Posted on Tuesday, November 06, 2007 - 8:47 am: | |
It's hard to believe that DPS employs more then UofM. I wonder if the UofM numbers include the hospital. |
Iheartthed Member Username: Iheartthed
Post Number: 2082 Registered: 04-2006
| Posted on Tuesday, November 06, 2007 - 10:21 am: | |
It's hard to believe that DPS employs more then UofM. I wonder if the UofM numbers include the hospital. Why is that? DPS has more students than U-M... |
Citylover Member Username: Citylover
Post Number: 2722 Registered: 07-2004
| Posted on Tuesday, November 06, 2007 - 11:16 am: | |
East detroit your logic sucks....... Company Name Number of Employees Business Description University of Michigan 30,574 Public University University of Michigan Health Centers 11,865 Hospital, research, education |
Detroitrise Member Username: Detroitrise
Post Number: 448 Registered: 09-2007
| Posted on Tuesday, November 06, 2007 - 11:26 am: | |
Citylover, he said he got it from Crain's. So it's apparently their logic that sucks. Besides, they may have only been looking into a certain sector of the university. |
Gistok Member Username: Gistok
Post Number: 5670 Registered: 08-2004
| Posted on Tuesday, November 06, 2007 - 12:31 pm: | |
What is sad is that Ford is at the top of the list, and yet it has something like ZERO employees in Detroit proper... how pathetic is that? (It may not be zero, but it is damn near close to zero!) |
Vanessam Member Username: Vanessam
Post Number: 5 Registered: 04-2007
| Posted on Tuesday, November 06, 2007 - 2:15 pm: | |
i've been living in the city for 3 years.... and can't find a job where i can ride my bike to work... unless i bartend or wait tables.. booo hoo... just graduated from wsu. and want something decent. |
Craig Member Username: Craig
Post Number: 389 Registered: 02-2007
| Posted on Tuesday, November 06, 2007 - 4:33 pm: | |
Van - where do you live? There is a lot in CBD (GM, banks, agencies, etc). Maybe the thin resume of a recent grad explains your circumstance? |
Burnsie Member Username: Burnsie
Post Number: 1194 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Wednesday, November 07, 2007 - 12:58 pm: | |
Gistok-- Why is it pathetic that Ford has close to zero employees in Detroit? It never was a major employer in the city. It simply evolved elsewhere-- in Dearborn, Highland Park, etc. It doesn't owe the city of Detroit a certain number of jobs. |
Gistok Member Username: Gistok
Post Number: 5684 Registered: 08-2004
| Posted on Wednesday, November 07, 2007 - 1:59 pm: | |
How soon we forget... it had almost 2,000 employees in the RenCen before GM took over back in the late 1990's. Jacques Nasser moved all of them to Dearborn. So it went from one of the "TOP 20" employers in Detroit down to zip... Since when has Detroit job losses NOT been a problem for the city?? Ford (the company, not the family) may be philanthropic towards Detroit cultural institutions, but they are useless as a taxpaying corporate citizen. They are Wayne County's largest employer... and yet have no presence in Detroit, how pathetic is that? We scream when Comerica moves 200 people to Texas, but become mum when Ford moves 2000 to Dearborn... go figure? And if that's not enough... they have lured many downtown companies out to Fairlane in Dearborn. Back in 1972, they lured the AAA Headquarters from the United Artists Building out to Fairlane (and the U/A has been a deteriorating eyesore ever since). Ditto for many other companies. Then this past year they even coerced their ad agency out of the Comerica Tower recently to move to Dearborn. And then they moved out of the Ford/UAW training center in the former VA Building next to Cobo Arena. So outside of Ford Field naming rights, and donations to cultural institutions... just what has Ford done for Detroit lately? (Message edited by Gistok on November 07, 2007) |
Thejesus Member Username: Thejesus
Post Number: 2641 Registered: 06-2006
| Posted on Wednesday, November 07, 2007 - 2:25 pm: | |
"So outside of Ford Field naming rights, and donations to cultural institutions... just what has Ford done for Detroit lately? " Who cares? They're based in Dearborn, and they do a lot for that city. What has GM done for Dearborn lately? Who cares? |
Gistok Member Username: Gistok
Post Number: 5685 Registered: 08-2004
| Posted on Wednesday, November 07, 2007 - 3:08 pm: | |
Well OBVIOUSLY you don't... Yes Ford does do a lot for Dearborn... and that's exactly my point... they do it at Detroit's expense... DUH! It's not just Dearborn... Ford has LOTS of locations in Wayne County... just NOT Detroit. If you don't see that as a problem... then I guess you don't see that Detroit has lost half of its' CBD worker population in the last 30 years is a problem. It's especially apparent when (as discussed in another thread) that Cleveland (a city of under 400,000) still manages to have twice the downtown worker population as Detroit. Detroit's problems are not just the small corporations leaving the city... but the big ones as well. But I guess just throwing some philanthropy money at Detroit makes it OK... P.S. Don't mix Ford Family with Ford Company... (Message edited by Gistok on November 07, 2007) |
Thejesus Member Username: Thejesus
Post Number: 2642 Registered: 06-2006
| Posted on Wednesday, November 07, 2007 - 3:34 pm: | |
Gistok: You're talking about the past 30 years when in fact Ford moved its HQ out of Detroit over half-a-century ago. Their roots in Dearborn are very strong and run very deep, and they've treated Dearborn quite well. I guess I don't quite understand why you think buying naming rights to a sports stadium and making millions of dollars in donations to cultural institution are so insignificant that they should hardly be counted given what little connection Ford has to Detroit proper. GM does a lot for the city of Detroit but I don't hear you complaining that they aren't doing enough for Dearborn or Auburn Hills. It would be great if more companies would locate downtown instead of the suburbs, but as long as they are there, then their obligations, if they have any, are to the cities they call home, first and foremost. I know you have this belief that Detroit is somehow entitled to certain things that other cities in SE MI are not, but most people don't see things that way. Companies located in the suburbs dish out cash donations for Detroit all the time, and if that's what they choose to do, then that's great. But I don't see where you get off acting like Detroit is entitled to reach into the pockets of a company that has been in Dearborn for over 50 years. Luckily you're not the person who thanks Ford on behalf of the city every time they do send money the city's way. Otherwise, your lack of appreciation would sour that relationship real quick. |
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba
Post Number: 5591 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Wednesday, November 07, 2007 - 4:05 pm: | |
Come on Gistok. We have Ford legacies, Piquette Ave., Mack Ave., Bagley Avenue, Boston-Edison, Ford Auditorium, Ren-Cen, and the Fords are buried in Detroit. Henry Ford was looking for land for facotries and he went to where he could find it, in a big big way. Saline, Manchester, Northville, Denver, Portland, Seattle, , Ypsilanti, Livonia, Wayne, Wixom, Los Angeles, Europe, Ireland, England. Sometimes it pays to think about how huge this company is and what impact Detroit has on the World. jjaba, Westsider. |
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba
Post Number: 5592 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Wednesday, November 07, 2007 - 4:09 pm: | |
Don't believe anything you read, jjaba tells it like it tis. Ann Arbor ain't a suburb. Zingerman's ain't a suburb. The Big House ain't a suburb. The Diag ain't a suburb. The world's first Border's Bookstore ain't a suburb. Nichols Arcade ain't a suburb. UM Law Quad ain't a suburb. Albert Kahn's fine Ann Arbor Bldgs. are NOT a suburb. And men, listen up, jjaba took a piss in the Men's Room of the Michigan League, also not a suburb. How big is THAT! jjaba, on the Westside. |
Gistok Member Username: Gistok
Post Number: 5686 Registered: 08-2004
| Posted on Wednesday, November 07, 2007 - 4:31 pm: | |
LOL at Jjaba... yes we sure do have a lot of Ford legacies... empty buildings that is... TJ... it's just that Ford is (at least indirectly) responsible for moving 4,000-5,000 folks OUT of downtown. That's a lot of folks who no longer pay taxes, provide jobs for spin off businesses downtown, etc. I agree that Ford has done a lot for Detroit. Much of that has been done by the Ford family, not the company. It's just that for all the good they've done, they've also contributed to the decline of the city center... that's all I'm saying. I guess I'm looking at the "glass half empty"... |
Gnome Member Username: Gnome
Post Number: 336 Registered: 08-2007
| Posted on Wednesday, November 07, 2007 - 5:41 pm: | |
Gistok, I don't get the 4 - 5000 figure. Ford never had even 2000 jobs in the Ren Cen. They had their Ford/LM marketing folks and the Deuce had an office - but he never used it - most of the execs where always in Dearborn. Even if you add in the 30 people from Wonderman or the 60 folks from Y&R even the 300 from JWT you can't get to even 3000. In fact, you could count it a net gain in employees once GM bought the RenCen. They brought in execs from Pontiac, Lansing, Grand Blanc, Flint and Warren. They finally consolidated their all of their sales and marketing departments in a single building. Ford - except for the early 20th century - never had a factory in Detroit. It seems you're bitching about something that never existed. Ford has been - and will always be - a Dearborn company. |
Track75 Member Username: Track75
Post Number: 2660 Registered: 10-2003
| Posted on Wednesday, November 07, 2007 - 6:06 pm: | |
quote:TJ... it's just that Ford is (at least indirectly) responsible for moving 4,000-5,000 folks OUT of downtown. That's a lot of folks who no longer pay taxes, provide jobs for spin off businesses downtown, etc. I guess you're not much of a "glass half full" kind of guy because you could also look at it like FoMoCo brought those jobs (whatever the correct number) into Detroit when they relocated people to the RenCen. They didn't have to do that. Too bad it didn't last, but that's life. They also continue to issue rather nice paychecks to their local employees, as they have for 100+ years. Many of those employees live in Detroit. |
Gistok Member Username: Gistok
Post Number: 5697 Registered: 08-2004
| Posted on Thursday, November 08, 2007 - 2:16 pm: | |
I was also including the AAA workforce in my figure. Ford lured them to their Fairlane Center. They used to occupy the United Artists and AAA Buildings until 1972. Now they're empty. The point I was trying to make is that Ford has been responsible for helping empty out more downtown buildings than any other company... (4 at last count... UA, AAA, VA, 300 RenCen... although GM backfilled that one). But if you folks think that's OK, then I can't change your mind. But I look at Ford as... "the right hand giveth, the left hand taketh away". But now there's nothing left in Detroit for Ford to take away... except maybe those last remaining "nice paychecks"... I will admit to having a bias against Ford Co. But part of the reason is that I (being a Theatre/Movie Palace Buff) have seen some of the spectacular theatres that Ford money has restored as Ford Centers For The Performing Arts in Vancouver, Toronto, New York, and above all others in Chicago. The spectacular (former Oriental Theatre) Ford Center For The Performing Arts in Chicago is the very opulent 3000 seat "over the top" flagship of the Ford Centers. And all we have is that abandoned "acoustically flawed" plain auditorium by the river... (Message edited by Gistok on November 08, 2007) |
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba
Post Number: 5594 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Thursday, November 08, 2007 - 2:38 pm: | |
Gistok tells it like it tis with the theaters. jjaba has been entertained in some of them. The Ford Theater at York, Toronto is nicely tied to the Civic Centre there and the subway system. jjaba got up and back from downtown for a dime one yr. One dime on subway to see the show, RAGTIME. Add the Ford Bldg. on Grand Blvd. and Woodward to your list of Ford ruins. That service bldg. became the State unemployment offices after Ford left. Gistok, a real treasure on this Forum. jjaba, Westsider. |
Gistok Member Username: Gistok
Post Number: 5700 Registered: 08-2004
| Posted on Thursday, November 08, 2007 - 2:51 pm: | |
Thanks Jjaba... I just get my "knickers in a twist sometimes"... no offense to anyone! |
Gnome Member Username: Gnome
Post Number: 341 Registered: 08-2007
| Posted on Thursday, November 08, 2007 - 2:57 pm: | |
Gistok, I get it, you think Ford is the devil. But I'm not buying into the "Ford lured AAA" notion in the least. Fairlane Development built a better building for AAA, a building they could own, whereas their presence in the aging United Artists building was a bummer for their employees. The UA is right across from where the Statler sat closed and rotting for 20 years. They were right next to the lovely Tuller Hotel that was a dump since the 1930's. At the time AAA moved the picture was pretty bleak on Grand Circus. Kales was empty, the Fine Arts building was closed, the Leland was/is housing for the semi-homeless. The Vermont Hotel was lovely. David Whitney was 1/3rd occupied. Nick's Gaslight was closed. jeeze, how much abuse do the employees of AAA deserve before they move into a newer building with loads of free parking, shopping near-by and tons of restuarants to choose from. Would it have been nice if AAA had stayed, invested their dough in funding a re-hab of the entire Grand Circus area? sure. but the fact they didn't doesn't have anything to do with Ford. The AAA building was a single story building designed to serve the downtown patrons, who never came in because they're weren't any patrons. Not too sure if you mean the Veterans Building on Hart Plaza when you refer the VA. There is so much to bitch about, but blaming Ford for removing jobs from downtown just doesn't wash. The JWT folks are back in Dearborn where they were from the late '60s until 1982ish. JWT was in Tower 600 before they moved into the COmerica Building, and they only stayed there as a personal favor between Peter Schweitzer and Dennis Archer. Once Kwame came in, Christine Beaty insulted Peter's wife at a Hob-Nobble-Gobble and once the JWT lease was up, they moved. You can blame City Hall for that, not Ford. One of the biggest drains was when ANR was bought by Elpaso and emptied RenCen's 5 and 600 towers, One Woodward and 4 floors in the Guardian Building. |
Gistok Member Username: Gistok
Post Number: 5704 Registered: 08-2004
| Posted on Thursday, November 08, 2007 - 5:13 pm: | |
Gnome, I think you got your dates wrong... the Statler was open until 1975. And the AAA public office was on Washington. The AAA Building is that 5 story building (last survivor on Statler block facing Bagley). Granted the area wasn't the best part of downtown, but ALL the buildings on Bagley were occupied at the time... and ALL the theatres were open (Michigan was used as a rock concert hall, UA had reserved seating)... the Michigan Mutual Building, Whitney, Broderick on GCP were open, and the Adams, Grand Circus and Madison Theatres were all open when AAA left for the burbs... Bagley and Grand Circus Park are today MUCH more desolate than when AAA moved in 1972. (Message edited by Gistok on November 08, 2007) |
Gnome Member Username: Gnome
Post Number: 349 Registered: 08-2007
| Posted on Thursday, November 08, 2007 - 5:16 pm: | |
Gistok, i guess the main problem I have with your Ford thing it that you suggest that Ford moved those jobs out of spite, or with the intentional plan to harm Detroit. My problem is that you've given Ford an evil heart; when in reality they have no heart at all. They are a cold and heartless organization and to give them evil intent is to give them too much credit. You know that adage: the opposite of love isn't hate, it's indifference. That's Ford, it is indifferent. It didn't move to hurt Detroit, it didn't care. One of the uniquely Detroit things is that many of our neighbors work at Ford's. They don't say that in Oklahoma or Chicago or Cleveland. Our neighbors work work at Ford's because we still think it's family. That they work for Mr. Ford, hence they work at Ford's. FoMoCo has fooled us into thinking they care, they don't. In re-reading my notes on your comments, it sounds like I'm attacking you, and for that I apologize. |
Sticks Member Username: Sticks
Post Number: 352 Registered: 08-2005
| Posted on Thursday, November 08, 2007 - 7:32 pm: | |
In regards to the funky UM employment numbers, keep in mind where people live. While UM does probably employ closer to double what Crains is reporting, where do those people live? Are all of them in A2 or do they live outside of Washtenaw County? |
Detroitrise Member Username: Detroitrise
Post Number: 504 Registered: 09-2007
| Posted on Thursday, November 08, 2007 - 7:34 pm: | |
"Gistok, i guess the main problem I have with your Ford thing it that you suggest that Ford moved those jobs out of spite, or with the intentional plan to harm Detroit. My problem is that you've given Ford an evil heart; when in reality they have no heart at all. Then why do I always feel that way about Hudson's and K-Mart? That's one reason why I like Wal-Mart. At least they didn't abandon their roots. You would think after all this time, Sears/K-Mart would at least revive the old Kresge store on Woodward and turn it into a Museum (like Wal-Mart did). (Message edited by DetroitRise on November 08, 2007) |
Gistok Member Username: Gistok
Post Number: 5705 Registered: 08-2004
| Posted on Thursday, November 08, 2007 - 7:47 pm: | |
Gnome, I think you just stated it best... indifference. I concede that AAA's decision was their own to make. It's just too bad that things happened the way they did. And being bitter about 35 year old events is not going to change anything. |
Miketoronto Member Username: Miketoronto
Post Number: 732 Registered: 07-2004
| Posted on Thursday, November 08, 2007 - 11:05 pm: | |
I have to agree that big companies like Ford, do have more of a role to play in the economic well being of the central city. Ford did not start in Dearborn. Ford started in downtown Detroit where the Michigan Theatre Building is. Ford along with all the big car companies, should have corporate offices in downtown Detroit. The fact that Ford has their world headquarters in a bland suburban setting, and not in the centre of the region in a landmark building really does not look good. And Thejesus, big companies should do more for Detroit. The suburbs you listed are just that "suburbs". And it is time the action was put back in the city, and not the suburbs. If that means favouring Detroit over Auburn Hills then so be it. Pull the funding in to the centre. I am doing a report for my urban planning class right now on transit issues in Detroit and the lack of access to employment. And one of the biggest issues is how decentralized Detroit is. 78% of jobs are located 10 miles or more from downtown Detroit. This is causing massive issues with getting people access to good jobs, if they don't drive. Its time the big business came home, back to downtown Detroit. Does anyone have historic figures on how much people worked in downtown Detroit during its heyday???? |
Detroitrise Member Username: Detroitrise
Post Number: 518 Registered: 09-2007
| Posted on Thursday, November 08, 2007 - 11:14 pm: | |
Miketoronto, I wish it was that easy. However, I don't see Ford making that big of a move. They own well over half (if not 3/4) of the land in Dearborn for development and they've helped build it into such a nice suburb. It's not going to help just suddenly moving suburban jobs to Detroit like Bewitched. Detroit needs to attract growing companies in Metro Detroit (ones that are just starting out) and expanding companies around the world. We need to market ourselves more. L. Brooks Patterson has been doing that pretty well for Oakland County, which is why our De Facto center is Oakland County. Mass Transit will be a start though. That way people can live as far as they want and just take a 30 minute public ride back and forth to work. And for the historical figures, Detroit back then was mostly a Financial and Civic city center. We still have one of he nation's top Financial districts today. This has dwindled some though because many of the big banks that were based in the Financial district have either relocated or have merged with bigger banks elsewhere. Downtown during it's heyday was mostly a entertainment and retail center (World Class at that) (Message edited by DetroitRise on November 08, 2007) |
Queensfinest Member Username: Queensfinest
Post Number: 133 Registered: 08-2006
| Posted on Friday, November 09, 2007 - 4:03 am: | |
The top three are still these 3 u.s. auto companies? Unbelievable. I would have thought with these auto firm's decades of misfortune a few other large corporations would have stepped up in the rankings some time ago? Those aren't exactly what I'd call encouraging statistics. Wow. Why hasn't there been any new industry in Michigan that has developed to pick up the slack in what has now been a generation or so since the inevitable decline of these manufacturing companies? Boston isn't still relying on and pining for the days of the shipbuilding and textile industries. Why is Michigan so different than the rest of the country? Everyone else diversifies yet Michigan holds onto these slowly dying industries? I don't get it. Some insight please. Thanks. |
Gnome Member Username: Gnome
Post Number: 351 Registered: 08-2007
| Posted on Friday, November 09, 2007 - 7:04 am: | |
Ah, Gistok, you are correct, I had my dates all screwy.Glad we could agree. I bet if you combined DPS with the Water, Fire, Police, Park and Rec, and all the city employees you would find that the city of detroit's largest employer is the City of Detroit. Something wrong with that picture. |
East_detroit Member Username: East_detroit
Post Number: 1244 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Friday, November 09, 2007 - 7:43 am: | |
Why isnt Gistok also attacking Chrysler for moving from Highland Park to Auburn Hills? I think we're lucky that GM, Ford and Chrysler didnt decide to move to the South like Comerica. Jobs for Metro Detroiters doesnt exclude someone who lives in the CoD (or in SCS, Gistok). |