Assaults were up 6.7% for the 12 months ending in April as confrontations became more violent. Black Chicagoans were more than 5 times more likely to be assault victims than their white counterparts.
Illinois grew jobs in eight of its 13 metropolitan areas during April, but the Chicago area’s sluggish growth and a stubbornly high unemployment rate tempered any gains.
Whether college protest encampments or political convention agitators, Chicago needs a way to penalize the few who disrupt life for the rest of us. A nuisance ordinance would do that.
Chicagoans reported 2,619 fewer vehicle thefts during the first four months of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, but cases remain more than double what they were just a few years ago as arrests remain low. One carjacking took a police officer’s life.
AAA’s travel forecast estimates 43.8 million people will hit the road for Memorial Day weekend, nearly matching the 2005 record of 44 million people.
Black workers in Illinois face a tougher job market than peers nationally. Hispanic men, Asians face lower unemployment rates relative to peers in other states.
Illinois House Speaker Chris Welch and Illinois Senate President Don Harmon are taking heat from staffers for killing legislation allowing the workers to unionize. Statehouse leaders are big on union rights, as long as it’s not in their offices.
This episode of The Policy Shop is by Bryce Hill, director of fiscal and economic research Illinois’ unemployment rate for Black workers last year was No. 2 in the U.S. Black Illinoisans faced average unemployment rates of 9.6% in 2023, compared to 5.5% for Black workers nationwide. That means Black Illinoisans were 75% more likely...
State leaders issued a report touting Illinois’ abandonment of representational government in favor of executive fiat during the pandemic as effective. They failed to take responsibility for job recovery lagging the nation by a year and seeing public schools suffer.
Illinois’ unemployment rate for April was near the highest in the U.S. Its recovery lags the nation by nearly a full percentage point.
The Illinois Senate approved legislation banning four food additives, sending it to the House. Manufacturers will need to sell an alternate recipe in Illinois if the bill becomes law.
A new bill in the Illinois General Assembly would ban employers from penalizing employees who do not show up to sponsored meetings. Employers could face $1,000 fines.