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Jobs & commute in Union Township

Union Township has higher unemployment (5.2%) than 64% of U.S. towns

Working from home is the commute for 4% of workers; Indiana has 11%. Jobs and income earn Union Township B−; getting around on foot earns it B−. About one in five work in Union Township; the top destination outside it is Auburn (22%, 2 miles).

Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made

What stands out · In brief

Union Township and work: the main findings

Union Township trades workers with the towns around it

Union Township has about as many jobs (5,977) as working residents (6,506), but they are mostly different people: 5,241 residents leave for work each day while 4,712 people come in. Only 21% of the jobs in Union Township are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓

Union Township and Auburn trade workers both ways

Auburn is the top workplace for Union Township residents (22%) and also where the most people who work in Union Township come from (21% of its jobs). The commute map ↓

Commutes from Union Township are quick

The average trip to work takes 18 minutes, against 24 across Indiana. That’s about 46 hours a year less on the road than the typical Indiana worker. Time on the road ↓

Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.

Jobs & income grade

What drives the Jobs & income grade in Union Township

On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Union Township is better than 53% of U.S. towns, #299 of 593 in Indiana. Job access by car holds Union Township’s grade up (ahead of 65% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down. It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.

Household income $75,568 (±$14,193) · IN $71,957 · U.S. $80,734Higher than 50% of U.S. towns
Poverty 8.7% · IN 12.3% · U.S. 12.5%Lower than 56% of U.S. towns
Unemployment 5.2% (±2.7) · IN 4.3% · U.S. 5.2%Lower than 36% of U.S. towns
Job access by car EPA, jobs within a 45-minute driveMore than 65% of U.S. towns
Indiana towns we grade 593 towns#299 of 593
CA−

A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Union Township could be anywhere from C to A−.

How TownRatings grades jobs & income →

★ What stands out · Day and night

In and out of Union Township on a workday

On a workday 5,241 residents head out to work, 1,265 work right here, and 4,712 people come in from elsewhere.

5,241live here, work elsewhere
1,265live and work here
4,712work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night14,000
Workday14,000
14,000live here− 5,200head out to work+ 4,700come in to work= 14,000on a workday

About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.92jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

About as many jobs as working residents (0.92 per resident).

Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.

The commute map

Where the trip to work from Union Township ends

Butler: 235 residents work here (4%)Waterloo: 133 residents work here (2%)Garrett: 342 residents work here (5%)Kendallville: 186 residents work here (3%)Angola: 159 residents work here (2%)Auburn: 1,441 residents work here (22%)Elkhart: 220 residents work here (3%)Fort Wayne: 1,388 residents work here (21%)Union TownshipPerry TownshipGrant TownshipJackson TownshipButler TownshipWilmington Township: 137 residents work here (2%)Indianapolis: 130 residents work here (2%)AuburnFort WayneGarrettButlerElkhartKendallvilleUnion Township
1
Auburn2.5 mi away
22%1,441
2
Fort Wayne21.4 mi away
21%1,388
3
Garrett6.1 mi away
5%342
4
Butler7.9 mi away
4%235
5
Elkhart53.6 mi away
3%220
6
Kendallville13.4 mi away
3%186
7
Angola18.3 mi away
2%159
82%137
9
Waterloo4.3 mi away
2%133
10
Indianapolis125.8 mi away
2%130
Everywhere elseother towns and states
33%2,135
The top trips

Where Union Township clocks in

Lines 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.

Time on the road

Commuting from Union Township: about 18 minutes a trip

A year of commuting
141 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.9 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

Union Township18 min
Indiana24 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
4%

of Union Township workers work from home, vs 11% across Indiana. Their commute is the hallway.

About 0 in 10
How Union Township gets to work
85%Drive alone
13%Carpool
<1%Transit
2%Walk

Share of the 6,695 commuters (the 4% who work from home are left out). Across Indiana: 85% 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.

The jobs

34% of the jobs in Union Township make or build things

5,977 jobs are based in Union Township.

Jobs based in Union TownshipJobs Union Township residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms34%36%
Trade, transport & utilities9%17%
Services: health, schools, offices57%47%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less17%14%
$1,251–$3,333 a month26%27%
Over $3,333 a month58%59%

Who does it

29 or younger25%26%
30 to 5449%50%
55 and older26%24%
−7%

Jobs based in Union Township, 2013 → 2023: 6,425 → 5,977. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.

Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.

Here is what they are, next to the jobs Union Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.

How far

Where in the region Union Township works

10 mi25 mi50 mi80 miAuburn: 22% · 2.5 miFort Wayne: 21% · 21.4 miGarrett: 5% · 6.1 miButler: 4% · 7.9 miElkhart: 3% · 53.6 miKendallville: 3% · 13.4 miAngola: 2% · 18.3 miWilmington Township: 2% · 5.6 miWaterloo: 2% · 4.3 miIndianapolis: 2% · 125.8 miAuburn 22%Fort Wayne 21%Garrett 5%Butler 4%Elkhart 3%Union Township
Union TownshipTop destinations (size = commuters)
40%Under 10 mi2,570 residents
39%10–24 mi2,513 residents
7%25–50 mi482 residents
14%Over 50 mi938 residents

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.

Getting around · Walkability grade

The commute in Union Township is mostly behind the wheel

On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Union Township is more walkable than 52% of U.S. towns, #250 of 593 in Indiana. Both inputs place Union Township near the same point nationally.

EPA walkability index 7.3 of 20 · typical IN town 5.6 · U.S. 6.9Higher than 56% of U.S. towns
Walk, bike or transit 2.0% of commuters · IN 3.3% · U.S. 7.1%Higher than 45% of U.S. towns
Indiana towns we grade 593 towns#250 of 593
B−B−

A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 6,969 workers.

How TownRatings grades walkability →

Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.

Households without a car (shown, not graded). 8.1% of Union Township households have no vehicle (Indiana 6.2%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Union Township’s commuters take a bus or train.

Towns its size

Union Township places 1,336th of 2,227 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 10,000 to 19,000

#TownPeopleHousehold incomePovertyUnemploymentWork in townGrade
1Beverly Hills MI10,449$177K1.7%1.6%3%A+
2New Albany OH11,803$238K1.4%0.9%11%A+
3Plain Township OH13,257$219K2.1%0.8%10%A+
…
51Whitestown IN15,767$124K2.8%1.6%6%A+
…
92McCordsville IN13,094$111K0.9%2.4%3%A+
…
103Brown Township IN15,523$140K2.3%2.8%3%A+
…
1,334Luling LA13,960$77K13.6%4.6%16%B−
1,335Hammonton NJ15,060$78K9.6%6.1%25%B−
1,336Union Township IN14,231$76K8.7%5.2%19%B−
1,337Jasper IN17,279$69K14.4%1.4%50%B−
1,338Camano WA17,303$105K6.7%4.5%8%B−
…
2,227Douglas AZ16,038$42K27.8%12.3%29%D−

Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.

Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Union Township, the top three, the last and three more from Indiana.

Next door

Union Township and the towns next door

The biggest share goes to Wilmington Township (2%).

10%+5–9%2–4%1%Under 1%

Average commute minutes, one way

Union Township18 min
Wilmington Township20 min
Jackson Township24 min
Grant Township27 min

Jobs & commute next door

TownUnion Township workers thereJobs & incomeWalkabilityCommuteHousehold income
Union Township–B−B−18 min$75,568
Jackson Townshipunder 2%A−D24 min$103,346
Wilmington Township2%C+C20 min$69,091
Grant Townshipunder 2%BC+27 min$80,000

Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.

Darker towns draw more of Union Township’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.

How to read these numbers

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.

How these figures and grades are made →

Jobs and commuting in Union Township: questions

What is the median household income in Union Township?

$75,568 (±$14,193) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,957 across Indiana and $80,734 nationally.

What is the poverty rate in Union Township?

8.7%, against 12.3% across Indiana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

How long is the commute from Union Township?

18 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Indiana and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.

Where do people who live in Union Township work?

19% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Auburn (22%, 2 mi), Fort Wayne (21%, 21 mi), Garrett (5%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).

Is Union Township walkable?

Union Township is more walkable than 52% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 7.3 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.

Can you get around Union Township without a car?

<1% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.

Commuter talk

Getting to work from Union Township, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of Union Township

Union Township home →

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. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.