Auto Prosperity and Auto Jobs Shift South

An article in the NYTimes Business section on Tuesday, "As Auto Prosperity Shifts South, Two Towns Offer a Study in Contrasts," contrasts the shifting fortunes of Livionia, MI and Georgetown, KY because of the shift in auto production from heavily-unionized states like Michigan to non-unionized states like Kentucky:

"Their changing fortunes offer more than a tale of two auto cities. They provide a close-up look at the impact of a broader economic shift of the nation’s auto industry from north to south, as Detroit falters and their surging Asian competitors invest in Southern states.

Over the last two decades, for example, the number of automotive-related manufacturing jobs in Michigan has fallen 34 percent, according to Economy.com. By contrast, the number of automotive jobs in Kentucky rose 152 percent over that period." (see graph above, click to enlarge)