Illinois still has 144,000 fewer people working compared with the state’s pre-recession employment level, while surrounding states have all experienced employment growth.

There are 170,000 fewer people working in Illinois since before the Great Recession.

State and local tax hikes in Illinois have hurt economic growth, lowered the standard of living, and contributed to out-migration.

Most states have far outstripped Illinois on the number of jobs recovered. And even worse, Illinois has also lagged in the quality of jobs recovered. Illinois was the 37th state to recover and match its pre-recession jobs count. But there are still 110,000 fewer Illinoisans working today than before the recession began.

Illinois still ranks last in the country for putting people back to work over the Great Recession era.

Some sectors of Illinois' economy have recovered completely, while others remain dramatically below pre recession levels.

The effects of the Great Recession still linger in Illinois, the pain of which has been distributed unevenly. Youth and minority workers have been hurt most by the state’s ongoing policy errors. The Great Recession caused employment losses across all demographic groups. Illinois’ policy mistakes and weak recovery – the worst in the U.S. –...