Work & commute · Empire

Work & commute in Empire, MI

Most working residents leave Empire for work: only 0% work in town. The top destinations are Glen Arbor (22%), Traverse City (16%) and Empire (10%). Half commute less than 21 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2021 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

0 of 83 working residents

Typical commute

21 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

24 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

21%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 83 Empire residents head out of town to work, 0 work right here, and 128 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Empire.

83live here, work elsewhere

0live and work here

128work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Empire goes to work

Glen Arbor13.8 mi away

22%18

Traverse City22.7 mi away

16%13

Empire2.5 mi away

10%8

Frankfort14.8 mi away

2%2

Walker126.4 mi away

2%2

Livonia214.3 mi away

2%2

Leland22.9 mi away

2%2

Saginaw138.1 mi away

2%2

Oak Park, IL220 mi away

1%1

South Bend, IN216.9 mi away

1%1

Everywhere elseother towns and states

39%32

Lines run between town centers; a thicker line means more commuters. The top 10 towns each way.

How far

How far Empire commutes

Straight-line distance from home to work, for every working resident. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.

33%

27%

41%

33%Under 10 mi

27%10–24 mi

0%25–50 mi

41%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Empire is a job hub

1.54jobs per working resident

A job hub

1.5 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Empire are

128 jobs are based in Empire. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Empire’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Empire

128 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)1%

Trade, transport & utilities5%

Services (health, schools, offices…)95%

$1,250 a month or less13%

$1,251–$3,333 a month34%

Over $3,333 a month53%

Jobs Empire residents hold

83 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)14%

Trade, transport & utilities25%

Services (health, schools, offices…)60%

$1,250 a month or less24%

$1,251–$3,333 a month23%

Over $3,333 a month53%

−22%

Jobs based in Empire, 2011 → 2021: 165 → 128. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.

About these numbers

How to read this page

Every worker, home to workThe Census links each worker’s home block to their main job’s block, for jobs covered by unemployment insurance. That’s most jobs, but not the self-employed.

Where the employer saysA job counts where the employer reports it. Some big employers report one address for many sites, which can make a few commutes look longer than they are.

Two surveysFlows, distances and jobs: LEHD 2021. Commute time and working from home: the Census American Community Survey.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2021, primary jobs; American Community Survey 5-year estimates.