​​New research from New American Economy underscores the critical role immigrants in Ottawa County play in the community’s labor force, STEM innovation, and economic vitality. The new report, New Americans in Ottawa County, was prepared in partnership with Ottawa County.

Key Findings

• Immigrants are helping the county meet its rising labor force demands. As of 2019, immigrants made up 5.4 percent of the county’s overall population, but represented 6.8 percent of its working-age population, and 6.7 percent of its employed labor force. Immigrants in the county are 28.2 percent more likely to be working age than their U.S.-born counterparts.
• Immigrants in Ottawa County help create or preserve local manufacturing jobs. Because of the role immigrants play in the workforce helping companies keep jobs on U.S. soil, immigrants in the regions helped create or preserve approximately 700 jobs that would have otherwise vanished or moved elsewhere.
• Immigrant households support federal social programs. Immigrants and refugees contributed $51.5 million to Social Security and $13.1 million to Medicare in 2019.

The report was produced as part of NAE’s and Welcoming America’s Gateways for Growth Challenge, which includes tailored research on the local immigrant population and technical assistance in the creation of a multi-sector strategic immigrant integration plan.

Read the full press release here.