A new report from the Brookings Institution looks at how the collapse of the auto industry would devastate local communities that rely on the Big Three automakers and auto supply companies for a large portion of the area’s employment.
 

Some metropolitan areas have very high concentrations of auto and/or auto parts jobs that depend for their existence largely on the Detroit Three. In Kokomo, IN, about 22 percent of all jobs are in autos and auto parts. A loss of those jobs could mean a loss of well over half of all employment in the area. In 12 more metropolitan areas where auto and auto parts jobs depend very heavily on the Detroit Three (Flint, MI; Battle Creek, MI; Mansfield, OH; Columbus, IN; Detroit, MI; Monroe, MI; Janesville, WI; Holland, MI; Anderson, IN; Saginaw, MI; Springfield, OH; and Lafayette, IN) the percentage of all jobs that are in autos and auto parts ranges from about 5 percent to nearly 8 percent. A loss of Detroit Three and supplier jobs could lead to losses of 15 to 24 percent of all employment in these areas. In a dozen other metropolitan areas where auto-related employment depends substantially on the Detroit Three (Ann Arbor, MI; Jackson, MI; Lima, OH; Danville, IL; Toledo, OH; Oshkosh, WI; Elizabethtown, KY; Grand Rapids, MI; Muncie, IN; Lansing, MI; Bowling Green, KY; and Tuscaloosa, AL), auto and auto parts jobs make up 3 percent to just under 5 percent of all jobs. Losses of those jobs could result in losses of 9 to 15 percent of all jobs in these metropolitan areas.

Unsurprisingly, many of the communities most dependent on the auto industry are in Michigan.