One-third of Illinois’ March layoffs hit Chicago security firm

Illinois companies announced 947 mass layoffs in March. All but 21 of the job cuts were permanent.

Illinois companies announced 947 mass layoffs during March, with over one-third concentrated at a Chicago security firm.

Of the 947 Illinois mass layoffs, 618 hit Chicago after six companies cut workers. The closure of security services provider Inter-Con Security Systems Inc. accounts for more than half of the Chicago layoffs and over one-third of the statewide tally.

The second-largest layoff was at Oak Brook-based manufacturer Tree House Foods. It announced it was reducing staff by 129 at its northwest Illinois warehouse in South Beloit.

Business closures accounted for 569 of the Illinois job losses, or about 60% of mass layoffs reported in March, while operational layoffs impacted an additional 357 workers. The most common reason employers provided for the mass layoffs were lost contracts.

Employer reporting showed about 98% of the mass layoffs will be permanent.

Illinois employers are required to file monthly mass layoff reports under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act if they have 75 or more full-time employees. While the reports serve as a gauge of job trends, they are not necessarily a reliable indicator of broader economic health.

Illinois’ 4.8% unemployment rate was No. 5 in the U.S., exceeding the national average of 4.1% in February. That unemployment rate translates into 321,000 Illinoisans looking for work, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Illinois state leaders could do a lot to make Illinois more attractive to businesses and workers. Some good places to start would be reducing Illinois’ nation-leading state and local tax burden, beginning with its No. 2-in-the-nation average property tax rate, lowering its second-highest-in-the-nation corporate income taxes and lowering the state’s 8.65% maximum unemployment insurance tax rate.