Oakland County Job Growth Continues

ROCHESTER HILLS, MI — A $17.3 million investment and 71 new jobs are coming to Rochester Hills. A.Raymond Corp., which develops, manufactures and markets fastening and assembly solutions, is planning on building its North American headquarters in the city.

“We are thrilled that A.Raymond has decided to continue its growth in Rochester Hills,” Rochester Hills Mayor Bryan Barnett said in a statement. “We appreciate their investment in our community and look forward to furthering our relationship with the A.Raymond family.”

A. Raymond Corp. is a subsidiary of France-based A.Raymond Network, the Oakland Press reported. Corporate offices and an advanced engineering lab will be housed at the Rochester Hills facility. Jobs are expected to be added over a five-year period.

A $600,000 performance-based grant from the Michigan Business Development Program helped the city snag A. Raymond Corp. Rochester Hills won out over a competing site in Ohio for the development, the Oakland Press reported

Job growth in Oakland County is nothing new. About 44,000 mostly white-collar, high-paying jobs are expected to be added in the next three years, according to a forecast by the University of Michigan. The forecast was given at the Oakland County Economic Outlook Luncheon held in Troy in April.

Jobs paying $75,000 a year or more are predicted to grow by 6.6 percent in Oakland County over the next three years, the Detroit Free Press reported. Middle wage jobs, those between $35,000 and $75,000 annually, are expected to grow by 5.7 percent. All of which is music to the ears of Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson.

"We're not going to be Tesla, not in manufacturing, but on the research and development side, we can give them a run for their money," Patterson told the Free Press, noting the county has a labor shortage in certain sectors. "I hear it every day: 'If you could promise me 100 engineers, I'd move my company here.’ We just don't have 100 engineers standing around. Not any more."

Last year, Oakland County outpaced both Michigan and the rest of the country in job growth. Oakland County averaged 2.4 percent job growth in 2016, compared with a national average of 1.4 percent and a state average of 1.6 percent, the Free Press reported.

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