Jobs, pay and the trip to work in Union
Union has 53 working residents in the Census job records, and no jobs of its own there. Hardly any work in Union; the top destination outside it is Tuscaloosa (17%, 28 miles). The average commute takes 48 minutes each way, where Alabama has 26 and the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The daily flow of workers through Union
On a workday 53 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 0 people come in from elsewhere.
About 110 people are in Union on a workday afternoon, 32% fewer than live here.
0.00 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Commuting out of Union: the destinations
Where Union clocks in
11% of workers
8% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
From Union, about 48 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 15.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Union workers work from home, vs 9% across Alabama. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 60 commuters (the 12% who work from home are left out). Across Alabama: 88% drive alone, <1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Union’s commute, mile by mile
About 46% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Union: questions
What is the poverty rate in Union?
29.2%, against 15.6% across Alabama and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Union?
48 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Alabama and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Union work?
0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Tuscaloosa (17%, 28 mi), Eutaw (11%, 10 mi), Bessemer (8%, 60 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Union without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Union, from the people who make the trip.
More of Union
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer.