The Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) announced today that the unemployment rate declined 0.3 percentage points to 5.4 percent in February and nonfarm payrolls increased by +25,600 jobs over-the-month, based on preliminary data proved by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and released by IDES. January job growth was revised up to show an increase of +8,100 jobs rather than the preliminary estimate of +1,700 jobs. February’s monthly payroll gain kept over-the-year job growth well below the national average, but Illinois now surpassed its prior peak employment reached in September 2000 by 100 jobs, even with some sectors such as manufacturing remaining 297,800 jobs below their prior peak.
“After 17 years, Illinois jobs have finally regained their September 2000 peak,” said IDES Director Jeff Mays. “However, nearly 300,000 manufacturing jobs that existed in the year 2000 are no longer in Illinois. While many other states – including our neighbors – have had positive growth in manufacturing jobs in the last several years, Illinois has not.”
“Illinoisans deserve a state that attracts good paying jobs, especially because of the great assets we have here in Illinois,” said Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity Director Sean McCarthy. “We cannot afford to waste another 17 years lagging behind. We need to make common sense reforms that will boost our economy and create more opportunities for Illinois families.”
In February, the three industry sectors with the largest gains in employment were: Government (+8,300); Construction (+7,300); and Education and Health Services (+5,800). The largest payroll declines were in the following sectors: Trade, Transportation and Utilities (-2,900); and Professional and Business Services (-500).
Over-the-year, nonfarm payroll employment increased by +47,000 jobs with the largest gains in these industry sectors in February: Education and Health Services (+15,300); Professional and Business Services (+12,100); and Government (+10,200). Industry sectors with the largest over-the-year declines include: Manufacturing (-7,400); and Other Services (-3,500). The +0.8 percent over-the-year gain in Illinois is half as strong as the +1.6 percent gain posted by the nation in February.
The state’s unemployment rate is higher than the national unemployment rate reported for February 2017, which decreased to 4.7 percent. The Illinois unemployment rate is down -0.7 percentage points from a year ago when it was 6.1 percent. At 5.4 percent, the Illinois jobless rate stands at its lowest level since October 2007.
The number of unemployed workers decreased -5.9 percent from the prior month to 352,400, down -12.5 percent over the same month for the prior year. The labor force increased +0.1 percent over-the-month but declined by -0.6 percent in February over the prior year. The unemployment rate identifies those individuals who are out of work and are seeking employment. An individual who exhausts or is ineligible for benefits is still reflected in the unemployment rate if they actively seek work.
- BigMike - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 1:31 pm:
IDES is not stating the truth, once your benefits expire, you longer are a statistic.
- RNUG - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 1:33 pm:
Just think what the Education and Health field increases might have been if we had a budget and we’re actually funding payment to those services.
- Anonymous - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 1:33 pm:
Thanks Trump
- Seats - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 1:37 pm:
Man they hate giving good news.
BigMike - there hasn’t been a change on how data is collected. That would have held true last month and even more so in states like Florida where you can only be on it about half the time you can in Illinois.
This is good news. But you have to figure the main reason people leave the state is they can’t find work; so that probably plays a role in reducing the percentage.
- Annonin' - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 2:01 pm:
This does not seem possible because every week the stooges at Illinois Policy Institute declare some new stampede from IL has occurred.
Think how all these numbers would look like if BigBrai had not been destroyin’ colleges and universities.
- Henry Francis - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 2:03 pm:
So when DCEO Director McCarthy states that we need “common sense reforms” to help grow the economy, is he talking about a budget?
Because that sure is a reform of the current status quo that is common sense.
- Commonsense in Illinois - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 2:04 pm:
Big Mike…Not true. As long as an individual is able, available and looking for work, they are considered part of the labor force which is the denominator in the employment picture. Exhaustion of UI benefits does not play into that.
- Chicago 20 - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 2:10 pm:
This report is another cry out for help!
I can only hope that the writer of this report gets the mental health treatment that they sorely need.
Or a budget.
- Ron - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 2:23 pm:
- BigMike - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 1:31 pm:
IDES is not stating the truth, once your benefits expire, you longer are a statistic.”
You are clueless. Let me guess, you like Trump.
- Deft Wing - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 3:23 pm:
This is good news … but Illinois still lags all of its surrounding states. Wisconsin’s at 3.7%.
We should be better and that starts not with more government, but with less and some sensible pro-growth initiatives.
- wordslinger - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 6:37 pm:
–We should be better and that starts not with more government, but with less and some sensible pro-growth initiatives.–
Wow, those are some serious, empty, nonsensical phrases. You would have been a great shill for Rauner, back in the day.
The biggest issue today ain’t unemployment, it’s stagnant or declining income for the overwhelming majority.
That’s going on all over the first world and has been since the first gasoline shocks of the 1970s.
As long as there was easy credit, and a robust stock market, and rising housing prices, the middle class had cash to draw on to finance their material needs.
Credit cards. Home equity loans. 401K loans.
But in 2008, the housing bubble burst, crashed the stock market and the Great Recession robbed those with home and 401K assets of about 50% of their nut — and the slow crawl back in growth has overwhelmingly favored the 1%.
That’s how you got Trump and Bernie populism at the same time, that’s how you got the complete rejection on the national level in the primaries of elected GOP leaders.
That’s how you got a D-List reality TV loser like Trump as president, that’s how you got Brexit, that’s how you got Le Pen, that’s how you got Wilders, that’s how you got Golden Dawn, that’s you got fascism masquerading as populist economics on the march in the richest countries on earth.
We’re in rough seas, folks. Keep your nerves and hold tight to your principles.
- Ron - Thursday, Mar 23, 17 @ 9:29 pm:
Incomes are growing. Look it up.
- just me - Friday, Mar 24, 17 @ 7:14 am:
See, Rauners way is not the way.
- BigMike - Friday, Mar 24, 17 @ 7:21 am:
When you no longer are eligible for UC benefits, you are not counted as unemployed. If you think you are, then you are incorrect.