A Rockford family and their trucking business are being driven out of Illinois by high taxes and bad public policies. If voters agree Nov. 8 to enshrining public union power in the Illinois Constitution, expect more businesses and workers to leave.
Illinois is steadily adding jobs lost during the COVID-19 economic downturn, but despite 10 months of gains the state recovery lags the nation. Some metropolitan areas are far behind where they were.
Key indicators show Illinois’ labor market could begin adding jobs faster than the national economy if population decline and Amendment 1 don’t derail the state’s trajectory.
Illinois’ employment recovery continued in March, but the state is still missing one in five jobs lost during the COVID-19 pandemic’s economic downturn and state restrictions.
Illinois is still missing 77,000 jobs from its restaurants, bars, hotels and other leisure industries since COVID-19 shutdowns. That Illinois jobs sector has recovered only 72% of what it lost in the pandemic – one of the nation’s worst recoveries.
Bloomington is the only metro area to recover jobs lost during the COVID-19 pandemic and statewide mandated shutdowns. Illinois is still missing 200,100 jobs as of January 2020.
The Illinois House voted to use $2.7 billion in federal relief to partially refill the state’s depleted unemployment trust fund. Some lawmakers said it’s not enough.
Amendment 1 would allow government unions to nullify hundreds of Illinois statutes – including laws aimed at protecting school children – simply by contradicting them in union contracts.