Chicagon Mine Road-Chicagon Creek Bridge · Photo: rossograph · CC BY-SA 4.0Bates Township has 0.1 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Hardly any work in Bates Township; the top destination outside it is Iron River (18%, 10 miles). Employers in Bates Township report 33 jobs, against 299 working residents. Working residents average 28 minutes each way (Michigan 24, U.S. 26).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Bates Township at work: what stands out
Bates Township is a place people come home to
There are 33 jobs based in Bates Township, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Bates Township has about 680 people in it, 28% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
A lot of Bates Township works one town over
33% of working residents work in a town that borders Bates Township: Iron River (18%), Crystal Falls Township (8%) and Hematite Township (4%). Next door ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2021, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; 2021 is the newest year Michigan has published; with 299 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Who works in Bates Township, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 297 residents head out to work, 2 work right here, and 31 people come in from elsewhere.
About 680 people are in Bates Township on a workday afternoon, 28% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2021, primary jobs.
Out of Bates Township to work: where people go
Where Bates Township clocks in
18% of workers
15% 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.
In Bates Township, 42% of jobs are in factories, building or farming
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Bates Township, 2011 → 2021: 46 → 33. 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 2021.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Bates Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How long Bates Township spends getting to work: about 28 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Bates Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 290 commuters (the 15% who work from home are left out). Across Michigan: 86% 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.
How many miles Bates Township commutes
About 23% 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 2021.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
33% of Bates Township works in a town next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Bates Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bates Township | – | — | — | 28 min | $54,688 |
| Hematite Township | 4% | — | — | 20 min | — |
| Iron River Township | 3% | D | C | 23 min | $55,655 |
| Stambaugh Township | under 2% | C+ | C | 26 min | $70,673 |
| Crystal Falls Township | 8% | D | C | 28 min | $57,986 |
| Amasa | under 2% | — | — | 20 min | — |
| Iron River | 18% | D | B+ | 11 min | $54,183 |
| Duncan Township | under 2% | — | — | 33 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Hematite Township and Duncan Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Amasa: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Iron River. Darker towns draw more of Bates Township’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2021, 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 Bates Township: questions
What is the median household income in Bates Township?
$54,688 (±$13,471) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Bates Township?
15.5%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Bates Township?
28 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Bates Township work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Iron River (18%, 10 mi), Crystal Falls (15%, 18 mi), Iron Mountain (8%, 39 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Can you get around Bates Township 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 Bates Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Bates Township
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2021, 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.