From State Rep. Dan Ugaste:

Illinois unemployment at 4.5%, higher than national average. The Department of Employment Security (IDES) has published preliminary Illinois unemployment-rate numbers for June 2022.  Unemployment was 4.5% in June, below recent pandemic-affected levels but significantly higher than comparable unemployment rates published in neighboring states in the same month.  In addition, the 4.5% Illinois unemployment rate was 90 basis points higher than the U.S. national rate of 3.6%.

Compared to the pandemic-affected June 2021 jobs picture, overall Illinois nonfarm employment was up by 245,700 jobs statewide.  The Leisure and Hospitality sector, which includes restaurants and other places that sell prepared food, led the way by creating 79,900 net new jobs over the twelve-month period.  The high-paying Professional and Business Services sector created 51,100 new Illinois jobs.

However, job creation was even healthier in states around Illinois, with many of these states noting record-low unemployment numbers. 

In Indiana, the June 2022 unemployment rate was 2.4%; in Iowa, 2.6%; in Kentucky, 3.7%; in Missouri, 2.8%; and in Wisconsin, 2.9%.

Looking at specific Illinois metro areas, several areas continued to post unemployment numbers in June 2022 that indicated widespread unemployment and local recession conditions in some sectors.  Examples were Danville (5.5%), Decatur (6.5%), Kankakee (5.3%), and Rockford (6.6%).  Hard-hit Illinois metro areas continued to be those with a traditional reliance on manufacturing.