Illinois job losses mount in June
Jayne Huseman of Naperville got a job just after earning her civil engineering degree and soon was promoted to construction project manager at a site-development firm.
She enjoyed the challenges of the job for six years. But business started to change, and she was laid off June 23.
"The company started laying off in the spring and just continued," Huseman said. "Considering what was happening in the industry, I felt it would happen to us soon, too."
Huseman joins 463,900 people on the state's unemployment ranks in June - the highest since 1993, according to a report Thursday from the Illinois Department of Employment Security.
The Bank of America merger with LaSalle Banks, along with continued losses in manufacturing and the real estate industries, have forced Illinois' unemployment rate upward in June to 6.8 percent, climbing 0.4 points from May. The national unemployment rate for June was 5.5 percent.
The number of unemployed increased for the second month in a row, up by 26,900.
"The magnitude was more than we expected and we seem to be reaching the national trends now," said Mitch Daniels, an IDES labor market economist.
The hardest-hit area in Illinois was the financial, insurance and real estate sector, which dropped about 2,900 workers, a reflection of the troubled real estate and mortgage industries, Daniels said.
Also, manufacturing continued to bleed jobs, this time about 2,200 - mostly from companies that make farm or road construction equipment.
Jon Berk of Naperville, who sold fork lifts and other industrial equipment, was laid off this week from his job.
"Industrial sales have been going down rather than expanding, so it's time to do an evaluation of where my other skills are," Berk said.
On the other hand, the professional and business services sector in Illinois added 6,600 workers with one-third of these new jobs being created in the higher paying professional services industries, the report said.
The leisure-hospitality sector also gained around 3,400 new jobs over the month, possibly due to more tourists taking vacations by visiting the Chicago area, Daniels said.
"The surprise increase was in hospitality, which could indicate more tourists taking stay-cations, where they stay close to home and save gasoline," Daniels said.
But for those looking to rejoin the employment ranks, staying close to home will be necessary.
Berk and Huseman both said they've hit the ground networking at the Job Club in Lisle and the Community Career Center in Naperville, among other avenues.
"I have a great background but realize the economy, being what it is, you have to have transferrable skills in order to find another job," said Huseman."