More than 50 municipalities have opted out of Cook County’s minimum wage hike, sick days mandate

By Amy Korte

06/26/2017

Municipal leaders have expressed concerns about the anti-competitive, job-killing effects of Cook County’s minimum wage increases and new sick leave law and are using home rule authority to exempt their communities from the requirements.

TAGS: Cook County, jobs, minimum wage, unemployment

Cook County black population falls by 12,000 from 2015-2016

By Michael Lucci

06/24/2017

Cook County has lost nearly 50,000 black residents since the 2010 census, and the rate is accelerating.

TAGS: Chicago, Cook County, employment, outmigration, population, prevailing wage, unemployment, workers compensation

Forget the unemployment rate, Illinois is in a depression

By Michael Lucci

06/21/2017

Illinois is tied for the worst income growth in the entire U.S.

TAGS: GDP, housing, jobs, personal income, unemployment

BLS data show Illinois would have 250,000 more people working if it kept up with surrounding states

By Michael Lucci

06/21/2017

Illinois has been lagging behind the rest of the region over the last decade, and will continue to do so if the state doesn’t enact necessary economic reforms.

TAGS: BLS: Bureau of Labor Statistics, IDES: Illinois Department of Employment Security, jobs, unemployment

Workforce dropout causes Illinois unemployment to fall slightly

By Michael Lucci

06/15/2017

A new report from the Illinois Department of Employment Security shows Illinois had a modest net gain of 2,400 jobs in May, but still has fewer jobs today than before the Great Recession began.

TAGS: IDES: Illinois Department of Employment Security, jobs, unemployment

Sears to cut 400 jobs, despite state, local tax breaks

By Brendan Bakala

06/14/2017

Sears Holdings has dropped below the job threshold necessary to qualify for the $15 million in annual state tax credits for which it was once eligible.

TAGS: Economic Development Area, jobs, Sears, tax credits, unemployment

1.8 million Illinoisans are dependent on food stamps

By Brendan Bakala

05/30/2017

March 2017 saw 15,000 more Illinoisans on food stamps than March 2016, while the number of Indiana SNAP recipients dropped from March 2016 to March 2017.

TAGS: food stamps, Indiana, jobs, SNAP, unemployment

Illinois has the nation’s highest black unemployment rate

By Michael Lucci

05/20/2017

New Bureau of Labor Statistics data show Illinois’ black residents have an unemployment rate of 12.7 percent, more than double the state’s overall rate.

TAGS: BLS: Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment, unemployment

Illinois loses 7,200 jobs in April, workforce shrinks by 17,800

By Michael Lucci

05/19/2017

Illinois still has 25,600 fewer jobs compared with the year 2000. Illinois is one of the only states in the country to have fewer jobs today than at the turn of the century.

TAGS: IDES: Illinois Department of Employment Security, jobs, unemployment

Nearly half of unemployed people in Illinois have given up on finding work

By Brendan Bakala

05/12/2017

A new survey from Harris Poll for Express Employment Professionals shows that nearly half of unemployed people in Illinois have given up looking for work.

TAGS: jobs, unemployment