Illinois stands as one of the states with the most to gain – and lose – as the national economy continues to surpass job growth expectations.

Illinois’ employment recovery continued in July, but the state is still missing nearly 1 in 9 jobs lost during the pandemic.

Only Bloomington has recouped early 2020 job losses, which is bad news for Illinois’ lagging economy as recession fears increase.

With the highest unemployment rate in the Midwest and 117,000 jobs still missing, Illinois’ labor market is among the least recovered in the region.

Illinois’ job opening rate declined 1.5 percentage points in May. That’s not a good way to enter a potential recession.

Politicians and pundits can’t seem to agree about whether the U.S. is in a recession, but the semantics matter little for struggling Americans. Illinois can expect economic pain regardless of what it’s called.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker added $650 million in taxes and fee hikes for small businesses in his last budget. Voters will decide Nov. 8 if Illinois’ business climate will get tougher, yet, through Amendment 1.