Feb. 9, 2015—The auto industry now employs more workers than it has at any time since March 2008, a time the industry and economy saw the beginnings of a steep recession, according to a report from The Detroit Free Press.
The auto industry added 6,700 jobs in January of 2015 alone, according to the report, raising employment in the industry overall to 913,200.
The automotive industry has been seen as recovering the quickest from wounds it sustained during the recent recession, where 228,000 manufacturing jobs have been added over the past 12 months. General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler are said to employ 141,000 U.S. hourly workers, up from 111,000 in 2011.
Increases in employment don’t translate to wage increases, however, as manufacturing wages have declined 4.4 percent from $16.38 per hour in 2003 to $15.66 as of 2013, according to the report.
Wages in the automotive sector have dropped and estimated 21 percent from $31.45 in 2003 to $24.83 in 2013 for automotive manufacturers.
