Indiana and Michigan laid the framework for a manufacturing and jobs recovery. Until politicians in the Illinois General Assembly get serious about pursuing real reforms, the state’s jobs climate with continue to decline.
Areas of Illinois that are driven by backbone industries such as manufacturing are being hollowed out. That reality is showing up in the form of government dependence.
Occupational licensing requirements present one of the steepest barriers to low-income Illinoisans starting careers in beauty services. Illinois requires anyone seeking to become a barber, cosmetologist, nail technician or hair braider to obtain a state license, essentially a permission slip to work. Unlike 45 other states, Illinois offers only one pathway to licensure for each...