Hoosiers by the Numbers

Your premier source for labor market information for Indiana.

EGR 6 map

EGR 6 consists of Blackford, Delaware, Fayette, Henry, Jay, Randolph, Rush, Union and Wayne counties.

Economic Growth Region 6 Analysis

Region 6 is in east-central Indiana, nestled between Indianapolis, Fort Wayne and Cincinnati, Ohio.

At the core of the region is Muncie, affectionately known as Middletown, USA, because of its inclusion in a landmark study in the 1920s in which a husband-and-wife duo of sociologists examined a “typical” small American city. Anchoring the southern part of EGR 6 is historic Richmond. Sitting on I-70, Richmond is considered one of the gateways to Indiana.

The region has large health care and manufacturing sectors, with IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie and food manufacturing firms throughout the region. New Castle is home to the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame and the largest high school gym in the country, New Castle Fieldhouse. EGR 6 has one of the four American towns that cross two states, Union City, located in Randolph County on the Indiana-Ohio border.

The region’s educational institutions include Ball State, Indiana University East, Ivy Tech and Earlham College. Its largest employers include Ball State, Reid Health, and Draper, Inc.

Recent Analysis

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Quick Stats

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330,700 Population (EGR 6)
4.3 Unemployment Rate (EGR 6)
$16.7 billion Personal Income (EGR 6)
$25.15 Average Wage (Muncie MSA)
$19.43 Median Wage (Muncie MSA)
49,400 Nonfarm Employment (Muncie MSA)
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Top 10 Occupation Groups by Growth
(2022-2032 long-term projections)

  1. Healthcare support occupations
  2. Computer and mathematical occupations
  3. Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations
  4. Community and social services occupations
  5. Personal care and service occupations
  6. Architecture and engineering occupations
  7. Life, physical, and social science occupations
  8. Education, training, and library occupations
  9. Business and financial operations occupations
  10. Transportation and material moving occupations

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and Indiana Department of Workforce Development

Dive into the long-term occupation projections with the Employment Outlook Projections Tool.

 

Top 10 Industry Sectors
(Based on 2023 annual average employment)

  1. Manufacturing
  2. Health Care and Social Services
  3. Retail Trade
  4. Educational Services
  5. Accommodation and Food Services
  6. Public Administration
  7. Construction
  8. Admin, Support, Waste Management
  9. Transportation & Warehousing
  10. Other Services (Except Public Administration)

Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages

Access multiple data sets on the Industry topic page.

Major Employers (Based on number of employees)

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EGR 6

  • Ball State University
  • Reid Health
  • Draper Inc.
  • Lifeline Personal Response
  • Henry Community Health
  • FCC Indiana Inc.
  • Premium Enterprises Inc.
  • New Castle Correctional Facility
  • Tyson Foods - Mexican Original
  • Ivy Tech Community College

About the data

Note: The list of regional employers on this page was updated September 2024 to include local insights.

data axle This database contains listings of nearly 12 million U.S. employers. Employer information is provided by Data Axle®, Omaha, NE, (866)-DATAXLE. Copyright © 2024. All Rights Reserved.

Major Educational Institutions

Name
Type
City
Ball State University Four-year Muncie
Indiana University East Four-year Richmond
Ivy Tech - Muncie Two-year Muncie
Ivy Tech - Richmond Two-year Richmond
Bethany Theological Seminary Independent Richmond
Earlham College Independent Richmond

Source: Indiana Commission for Higher Education


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Largest Cities and Towns in Economic Growth Region 6

Name Population in 2023 Percent of region County
Muncie 65,081 19.7% Delaware
Richmond 35,425 10.7% Wayne
New Castle 17,329 5.2% Henry
Connersville 13,298 4.0% Fayette
Yorktown 11,740 3.6% Delaware
Rushville 6,191 1.9% Rush
Portland 6,187 1.9% Jay
Hartford City 5,974 1.8% Blackford
Winchester 4,778 1.4% Randolph
Union City 3,423 1.0% Randolph

Source: U.S. Census Bureau annual population estimates

Wayne County courthose photo
The Wayne County Courthouse, Richmond, Indiana

Helpful Regional Tools and Resources

EGR 6 IN Depth Regional Profile

At-a-glance details about the region's population, labor force, housing and more.

County Highlights

Get a snapshot of critical population and workforce statistics for each county in the region.

INDemand Jobs

Find job postings and training for the jobs that are both high wage and high demand.

Regional Labor Mix

Discover the regional mix of occupations and/or industries to gain insight into strengths or identify gaps.

Regionizer

Build a region to view demographics, commuting patterns, industry clusters and occupation clusters, including the ability to include counties that border Indiana.

Labor Force Projections

These are the official labor force projections to 2050 released in September 2018 by the Indiana Business Research Center.

Commuting

The commuting data page provides easy access to multiple commuting data sets and visualizations.

Regional Links

View A to Z Guide for a list of external links statewide.