IL UNEMPLOYMENT RISES AGAIN - Now Stands at 7.9% Statewide!
ACROSS IL, EMPLOYERS TRIM ANOTHER 29,300 WORKERS IN JANUARY!
Rising Unemployment, and its continued negative ramifications for the Real Estate Market in Chicago and Across Illinois, appears unabated, according to figures released yesterday by the Illinois Department of Employment Security. Of the over-29,000 jobs lost here in the state in January, 10,800 disappeared from the manufacturing sector, from Peoria- based Caterpillar, Inc., to smaller companies across IL. The numbers are summarized in James P. Miller's story in today's Chicago Tribune.
The last time the Jobless Rate in Illinois was this high was in April, 1993.
Unemployment across the state in January exceeded the national rate of 7.6%. Last month, in February, the national jobless rate hit 8.1% - the highest level in the last 25 years. IL figures for February will be released in two weeks.
One year ago, the IL Unemployment Rate stood at 5.8%. While jobs were lost here at a staggering rate, several other states have higher jobless percentages than IL. The January Unemployment hit 11.6% in Michigan, due to heavy job losses in the auto industry. California, Rhode Island, and South Carolina also had double-digit jobless rates.
Over the past year, the IL Financial Services and other similar businesses lost 6,900 jobs across the state.
DEAN MOSS & DEAN'S TEAM CHICAGO
