Illinois continues to struggle with job growth, according to the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES).
The IDES reported in a July 20 news release that the state's unemployment rate rose 0.1 percentage points in June, putting Illinois' unemployment rate at 4.7 percent for the month, or 0.3 percentage points higher than the national rate.
While payroll growth is higher at 2017's midway point was than it was during the first half of 2016, it is half the rate it was at the same point in 2015. Illinois also is well below the national average in job growth, the IDES said in a press release.
The labor force in June was also down 0.3 percentage points and is off 1 percentage point from the prior year.
“The unemployment rate increase and a decline in construction payroll are troublesome, but the trend of declining labor force is something we cannot ignore,” IDES Director Jeff Mays said in the news release. “This was the fourth consecutive over-the-month decline in labor force, which is now at its lowest level since March 2006.”
Sean McCarthy, the state's director of commerce, sad that a competitive economy is vital for job creation and opportunities for the state's residents.
“We must institute true reforms that will help businesses expand and thrive here," he said in the news release.
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