Work & commute · Union

Work & commute in Union, NJ

Most working residents leave Union for work: only 7% work in town. The top destinations are Newark (11%), New York (10%) and Elizabeth (5%). Half commute less than 10 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

2,102 of 29,352 working residents

Typical commute

10 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

30 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

12%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 27,250 Union residents head out of town to work, 2,102 work right here, and 26,990 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Union.

27,250live here, work elsewhere

2,102live and work here

26,990work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Union goes to work

Newark5.4 mi away

11%3,088

New York, NY17.5 mi away

10%2,838

Union (in town)right here

7%2,102

Elizabeth4.4 mi away

5%1,421

Jersey City10.8 mi away

3%1,000

Edison13.8 mi away

2%702

Woodbridge9.3 mi away

2%628

Morristown13 mi away

2%520

Parsippany-Troy Hills13.9 mi away

2%477

Livingston7 mi away

2%470

Everywhere elseother towns and states

55%16,106

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

How far

How far Union commutes

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

49%

40%

49%Under 10 mi

40%10–24 mi

7%25–50 mi

4%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Union is balanced between jobs and homes

0.99jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (0.99 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Union are

29,092 jobs are based in Union. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Union’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Union

29,092 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)10%

Trade, transport & utilities31%

Services (health, schools, offices…)59%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month29%

Over $3,333 a month55%

Jobs Union residents hold

29,352 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)10%

Trade, transport & utilities22%

Services (health, schools, offices…)68%

$1,250 a month or less11%

$1,251–$3,333 a month21%

Over $3,333 a month68%

+2%

Jobs based in Union, 2013 → 2023: 28,521 → 29,092. 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 2023. Commute time and working from home: the Census American Community Survey.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs; American Community Survey 5-year estimates.