
Unemployment, social issues theme. Job fair table with employment applications, resumes ready for potential applicants to register for the event. Window background.
January 23, 2023 – The Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) announced that the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.7 percent, while nonfarm payrolls were almost unchanged, down by just -800 in December, based on preliminary data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and released by IDES.
The November monthly change in payrolls was revised from the preliminary report, from +17,500 to +12,100 jobs. The November unemployment rate was unchanged from the preliminary report, remaining at 4.7 percent. The December payroll jobs estimate and unemployment rate reflect activity for the week including the 12th.
In December, the industry sectors with the largest over-the-month gains in employment included: Educational and Health Services (+5,200), Trade, Transportation and Utilities (+3,300), and Government (+1,800). The industry sectors with the largest monthly payroll declines included: Professional and Business Services (-3,000), Leisure and Hospitality (-2,500), and Other Services (-2,100).
“As payroll and the unemployment rate remains steady throughout the state, Illinois is focused on continued job expansion and engaging jobseekers into the strengthening economy,” said Deputy Governor Andy Manar. “As they have done since the beginning of the recovery effort, IDES continues to assist workers, employers, and businesses with the resources they need to actively participate in the labor market.”
In May 2020, Governor Pritzker launched Get Hired Illinois, a new one-stop-shop website to help connect job seekers with hiring employers in real time. The site features virtual job fairs, no-cost virtual training, and includes IllinoisJobLink.com (IJL), the state’s largest job search engine, which recently showed 55,797 posted resumes with 126,713 available jobs.