Physical therapist assistants in Michigan earned an average annual salary of $43,950 in 2014 according to a salary survey published by the United States Department of Labor that year. This was equivalent to about $21.13 per hour. As PTAs progressed in their careers, the rate of pay increased accordingly.
That year, Michigan’s physical therapist assistants were offered an entry-level salary of between $22,320 and $32,910, depending on the employer and the location in which they worked. By mid-career the average was considerably higher at $43,740 statewide. Highly experienced physical therapist assistants that worked in Michigan’s major hospital systems and specialty clinics recorded an average salary of $61,160 that same year.
Physical Therapist Assistants are in High-Demand in Michigan
Michigan boasts some of the highest employment numbers in the nation for physical therapist assistants. Michigan’s healthcare sector places a high priority on hiring quality workers within the physical therapy field, reporting that 3,670 PTAs were actively licensed in the state as of 2014. However, that only worked out to one PTA for every 2,700 people in the state, and the gap continues to grow. As such, there is still a great need for more physical therapist assistants in the state’s hospitals, rehabilitation centers and outpatient physical therapy clinics.
According to the Michigan Physical Therapy Association (MPTA), PTAs in the state find jobs in a wide variety of environments ranging from major public and private hospitals to outpatient clinics to providers of in-home personal healthcare services. The MPTA is also very involved in local, state, and national legislature, fighting for better policies and new bills that would help support easier access to physical therapy in Michigan.
Annual Salaries for PTAs in Michigan’s Major Metropolitan and Non-Metropolitan Areas
Just as the average salaries of physical therapist assistants in Michigan differed depending upon experience in 2014, another key factor was location of employment. Since salaries often correspond to the demand for PT services in a given area, PTAs often earn more in the less populated rural areas that have become notorious for being medically underserved.
For example, PTAs who worked in the greater metropolitan area of Detroit-Livonia-Deerborn earned an average annual salary of $49,270 ($23.69 per hour). Surpassing Detroit’s average was Flint, where the average salary was $51,190 ($24.61 pr hour). The city of Jackson, located just 35 miles south of the capital city of Lansing, paid its physical therapist assistants a competitive average salary of $53,730, annually ($25.83 per hour).
For a more detailed analysis of PTA salaries in various metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas in Michigan, see the data provided below (U.S. Department of Labor, May 2014):