* From a COGFA report on the Illinois economy. Click the pics for a larger view. Unemployment by counties…

* Unemployment is up…

* Illinois exports have slowed, at least partly due to the growing European recession…

       

31 Comments - wordslinger - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 10:15 am: In addition to the European recession, China’s slowing down equipment purchases for mining, which caused CAT to revise their projected profits downward the other day. Still, CAT is a very healthy and profitable company. Looking at $60 billion or so in sales this year. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-04-22/caterpillar-profit-misses-analysts-estimates-on-mining-slowdown.html - I don't want to live in Teabagistan - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 10:15 am: There is the phenomenon that when an economy starts to pick up, more people start looking for work and unemployment numbers can go up. Is there any of this here? - OneMan - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 10:15 am: Interesting they do the graph colors on the state map so it is hard to tell what parts of the state are worse than others… - muon - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 10:17 am: The color coding in the map isn’t that helpful. IDES has a better scale in this document. It puts the top category at 10% instead of 8%. http://www.ides.illinois.gov/custom/library/statistic/LAUS/countymap.pdf - RonOglesby - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 10:20 am: Whats going on in Brown county and near quincy? why are they looking better than the rest of the state? (I really dont know). - Huggybunny - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 10:32 am: CAT can’t be doing too bad, if they can give their CEO a raise of 32%. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-04-22/business/chi-caterpillar-ceo-pay-20130422_1_retirement-plan-caterpillar-ceo-2012-profit - walkinfool - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 10:47 am: Thanks muon. Better version of same map. Distressing picture, either way. - iThink - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 10:52 am: I think this reinforces that something needs to be done concerning the business climate in Illinois. We have a lot to offer, but we need to do something that attracts employers? How to do that with out the continuing race to the bottom, I do not know. Though a $10 minimum wage ain’t gonna help. - fiefdomone - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 10:53 am: Okay, I’ll bite - what is going on in Brown County? - Quiet Sage - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 10:56 am: The higher Illinois unemployment rate relative to the U.S. could actually be a positive indicator for the state, as it may show that workers here have not given up their job searches (at which point they cease to be counted as unemployed). - Whatever - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 10:57 am: Per fief — and what’s going on in Quincy? - Rich Miller - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 11:00 am: That part of the state has always outperformed the rest of Illinois. Well, at least for the past 15-20 years or so. They have a lot to teach the rest of us. - Downstater - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 11:00 am: The Democrats running the State of Illinois in Springfield proudly wear this badge of ineptness and incompetence around their necks. All they want to do is keep spending money, not paying bills, and increasing debt. - RonOglesby - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 11:08 am: @Quiet —The higher Illinois unemployment rate relative to the U.S. could actually be a positive indicator for the state— Positive attitude! I love it. - LisleMike - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 11:08 am: What am I missing? What does the profitablity of Cat have to do with unemployment. Looks like a drive by snark, as does the raise given to CEO. If we cut his pay would employment go up? Employers are still waiting for Affordable Health Care Act costs to be determined. We offer OT to existing employees rather than hire new with unknown costs. Business is in business to make a profit. there is nothing wrong with that. They will do it wherever it suits them best. That is why Texas is luring, Wisc is luring, and Indiana is luring business from our state. All of the economic concerns for our state are haning like a sword over the business owners. History has shown that they are first taxed when revenue is needed. - RonOglesby - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 11:09 am: So no one here knows what is different about Brown county? Is there a huge employer there or something? or is it the same as everywhere else but local gov is doing something right? - wordslinger - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 11:19 am: –What does the profitablity of Cat have to do with unemployment. Looks like a drive by snark,– How? It was an expansion on the point that exports are down because of European austerity. CAT is dialing back projections — and laying off workers in Decatur — because China mining orders are down. If pointing out that a company remains healthy and profitable despite that is snark, I think most businesses would take that arrow. Personally, I spent much of the 80s covering layoffs and plant shutdowns involving CAT, Deere, IH, Case, so I’m glad they’re healthy. - Caveman - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 11:20 am: @ Quiet Sage- Now that’s what I call an optimist! - LisleMike - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 11:39 am: @Word- apologies, I apparently combined other postings and included yours. BTW my dad got his start in Newspapering, covering Deere unionization in the 50’s for the Moline Dispatch. I recognize and applaud the effors! - wordslinger - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 11:58 am: –So no one here knows what is different about Brown county?– Small farming county (6,900) with a state prison (WICC)? Quincy is a regional hub. Might explain something for Adams. - Bobbye - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 12:12 pm: First time post to your site although following for years.I read through this report and the only positive I could see was retail sales up well above inflation. To me unemployment is not as important as total employment (I like the household survey) Employment is way off and not recovering. I’m a regestered Democrat but my problem with Illinois is that with a super majority in both houses and Gov. they can’t pay the bills and solve the legacy issues. I’m afraid until they do growth will not happen. - anon - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 12:26 pm: wer: “CAT can’t be doing too bad, if they can give their CEO a raise of 32%” After CAT shoved a 50% wage cut on the workers in a plant in Canada and when the union didn’t accept it they shut the plant down and moved it to Ind. Maybe that’s where the CEO’s raise came from? - Judgment Day - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 12:50 pm: Quincy is not only a regional hub, it’s on the Mississippi, and it’s got a fair amount of AGRI business suppliers. And Agriculture had had a couple of good years in a row. Now that they have IL 336 from I-172 North from Quincy all the way up to 136, and the 4 lane to Macomb (WIU), we’re doing better. Now, we just have to get the rest finished over to Peoria. - anon - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 12:54 pm: You know the Chicago Metro unemployment data from the BLS is interesting. We see the civilian labor force going from 4,136,500 in Feb. to 4,091,300 in Mar. A loss of around 45,000 workers. And.. “Employed” went from 3,712,500 in Feb. to 3,704,600 in Mar. A loss of 8,000 workers Yet unemployed went from 424,000 to 386,700 a decrease of 38,000 people creating an unemployment rate improvement from 10.3% to 9.6% Is anyone buying those numbers? Really? 38,000 unemployed workers just #poof# disappeared and they took 8,000 of the employed workers with them…IN ONE MONTH? This is supposed to be interpreted as improving conditions that is attracting more people into the workforce? How? Tell me how? http://www.bls.gov/eag/eag.il_chicago_md.htm Me thinks unemployment is really about 10.6% for Chicago metro instead of this magical massive improvement to 9.6% that has been published. - Small Town Liberal - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 1:04 pm: - Is there a huge employer there or something? - Yes, DOT foods. Very large employer, small population county, nearly everyone works there. - Small Town Liberal - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 1:05 pm: *Dot Foods - anon - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 1:09 pm: wrt: “…I think this reinforces that something needs to be done concerning the business climate in Illinois. We have a lot to offer, but we need to do something that attracts employers?..” ——– Well in Chicago the way they do this is that the city council and the mayor block successful companies like Chick-Fil-A from expanding. Then make it difficult for anyone in the booming firearms business from doing business here. The Illinois Gov. manipulates state services in a manner whereas doctors cannot get a state license to do business here because of the backlogs. We don’t need those highly paid positions and their staff I guess. It gets worse… Caterpillar Layoffs: Company Will Cut 11% Of Workers At Decatur, Illinois Plant By June — 460 workers. U.S. Cellular plans 600 layoffs in latest WARN report - Chicago. in Danville, Illinois, where FreightCar America has announced the closure of its plant. The workforce of 250 workers, organized under the United Auto Workers, will be laid off at the end of April. The unemployment rate in February for Danville was 12.4 percent, up from 10.9 percent a year earlier. Ciba Vision Corporation, bought by Alcon Laboratories of Forth Worth, Texas, is closing a plant in Des Plaines, Illinois, laying off 262 plant workers. Minnesota-based Caribou Coffee, which went private this year, is closing a large number of Chicago-area cafes. It is estimated that 1,000 positions will be lost. The list goes on… - Cincinnatus - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 1:32 pm: I believe it is better to look at the total workforce numbers: http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LASST17000003 - Cincinnatus - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 1:35 pm: Forgot to add, “and the U-6, which is not yet available for 2013.” - Cheswick - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 2:43 pm: I can’t be the only one who, upon hearing anything about Adams County or Quincy, thinks of Mike McClain. I wonder what he knows. - Just The Way It Is One - Wednesday, Apr 24, 13 @ 7:13 pm: No away around it but to call it what it is–except for (and hats off to our fellow Illinoisans gainfully employed and employING IN) Brown, Adams, and Monroe Counties, brutal. And, although Europe is no doubt mainly to blame, obviously not a much better picture on the Export scene–I, for one, AM glad that the Governor DID at least head off on his Economic Mission to MEXICO to stir up some more business, and Quinn’s friendship with China and ITS’ Government and Business Leaders, at least, sure can’t HURT the overall cause…! Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.