Illinois companies announce nearly 800 layoffs
September WARN report shows 790 mass layoffs, including 128 in manufacturing.
The summer was devastating for Illinois jobs and manufacturing, and the beginning of autumn marked little improvement.
Companies in Illinois announced 790 layoffs in September, including 128 layoffs in manufacturing. September’s numbers mark a slight improvement from August, which saw 1,044 mass layoffs, with 495 of the jobs lost coming from the manufacturing sector.
While the number of mass layoffs in September was lower than those in August, it is little consolation considering August was the worst month for Illinois manufacturing since the Great Recession.
The figures are from the September Illinois Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification, or WARN, report. The WARN report is intended to notify workers and the public of mass-layoffs on a monthly basis. While not entirely reflective of the overall state of the economy, WARN reports are useful for understanding monthly layoffs.
The 128 September manufacturing layoffs came entirely from Bretford Manufacturing, Inc., an office furniture manufacturer based in Franklin Park. Plastic Workers’ Union, Local 18 AFL-CIO represented the workers.
Cook County bore the brunt of the burden, accounting for 453 of the total layoffs. After Cook, White County was the most devastated county, losing 227 workers. The entirety of White County’s job losses came from a single employer: White County Coal, LLC which specializes in bituminous coal underground mining.
Illinois’ continued loss of jobs, especially high-paying, blue-collar jobs in the manufacturing and mining sectors, is due to the state’s refusal to enact reforms. Illinois has the highest property taxes in the country, the most expensive workers’ compensation system in the region, ballooning pension costs and near-junk level credit status. All of these factors combined have made Illinois the Midwest’s manufacturing graveyard and has hastened the severe out-migration crisis.
Other Midwestern states have enacted pro-growth policies, which have enabled businesses to expand opportunities for working and middle-class families. After the Great Recession, Michigan passed Right-to-Work statewide and cut taxes. Because of these reforms and the restructuring of the auto industry, Michigan created 171,000 manufacturing jobs, 12 for every one that was created in Illinois.
It doesn’t have to stay this way. By taking lessons from Michigan and instituting pro-growth reforms, Illinois can revitalize its dying manufacturing sector and bounce back from years of failed policies.