Stancer-Road-North Coldwater River Bridge · Photo: Rod Detty (ardee4) · CC BY 2.0Union Township has higher unemployment (9.9%) than 94% of U.S. towns
The average commute takes 27 minutes each way, next to 24 for Michigan and 26 for the U.S. Jobs and income earn Union Township D; getting around on foot earns it B−. Only 6% work in Union Township; the top destination outside it is Coldwater (16%, 9 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Union Township at work: what stands out
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in Union Township
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Union Township is better than 12% of U.S. towns, #654 of 701 in Michigan. Household income holds Union Township’s grade up ($64,107, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down.
The commuting and job counts on this page are Census LEHD 2021: Michigan reports later than other states, so its newest year is two years behind.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Union Township could be anywhere from D to C+.
A workday in Union Township: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 1,055 residents head out to work, 70 work right here, and 261 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,200 people are in Union Township on a workday afternoon, 27% fewer than live here.
0.29 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 2021, primary jobs.
Where Union Township’s working residents head each day
Where Union Township clocks in
16% of workers
9% 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.
The kinds of work in Union Township
331 jobs are based in Union Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Union Township, 2011 → 2021: 398 → 331. 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 Union Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How long Union Township spends getting to work: about 27 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Union Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,077 commuters (the 11% 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 Union 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.
In Union Township, the car does most of the work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Union Township is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns, #271 of 701 in Michigan. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 3.7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 3.8% across Michigan, on an EPA index of 5.7.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,204 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). 5.4% of Union Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Union Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Union Township ranks: 4,007th of 4,618 U.S. towns of 2,100 to 4,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 22 | Franklin MI | 3,134 | $194K | 2.8% | 2.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 137 | Village of Grosse Pointe Shores MI | 2,533 | $190K | 2.7% | 3.5% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 232 | Milton Township MI | 3,187 | $119K | 3.2% | 2.3% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 4,005 | New London OH | 2,368 | $50K | 15.3% | 8.2% | 14% | D |
| 4,006 | Myrtle Creek OR | 3,481 | $56K | 16.2% | 5.9% | 7% | D |
| 4,007 | Union Township MI | 2,969 | $64K | 15.4% | 9.9% | 6% | D |
| 4,008 | Starkey NY | 3,334 | $55K | 19.7% | 4.8% | 16% | D |
| 4,009 | Ripley Township OH | 2,476 | $64K | 25.0% | 2.8% | 2% | D |
| … | |||||||
| 4,618 | Cibecue AZ | 2,228 | $26K | 57.2% | 13.3% | 12% | 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 Michigan.
Around Union Township: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to Burlington Township (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Union Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Union Township | – | D | B− | 27 min | $64,107 |
| Sherwood Township | under 2% | C | D− | 35 min | $64,531 |
| Girard Township | under 2% | C | D− | 22 min | $77,917 |
| Burlington Township | 2% | C+ | C | 32 min | $74,167 |
| Batavia Township | under 2% | C+ | C+ | 23 min | $61,389 |
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.
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 Union Township: questions
What is the median household income in Union Township?
$64,107 (±$10,814) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Union Township?
15.4%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Union Township?
27 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Union Township work?
6% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Coldwater (16%, 9 mi), Battle Creek (9%, 19 mi), Marshall (6%, 18 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Union Township walkable?
Union Township is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 5.7 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Union Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 5% 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.
More of Union 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. 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.