Counties with the highest unemployment in Illinois
The first jobs report under the new Trump administration showed a stable job market, with the unemployment rate ticking down from 4.1% to 4% in January, the lowest since last May, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics figures released Feb. 7.
The report marks 49 consecutive months of overall job growth, the second-longest recorded period since 1939.
Job losses that did occur were concentrated in the mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction industries, which declined by 8,000 jobs over the month. There was little change in employment in other major industries.
To get a glimpse of regional variations in employment, Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rates Illinois, using BLS data. Counties are ranked by their preliminary unemployment rate in December 2024, with initial ties broken by the number of unemployed people within that county, though some ties may remain. County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.
Key takeaways: Jobs report reveals cooling labor market
January's job growth of 143,000 fell short of expectations, while the downward revision of 589,000 fewer jobs in 2024 suggests the labor market was weaker last year than initially thought.
Business leaders are starting to display more caution, with 67% of executives reporting higher stress levels heading into 2025, according to a survey of 1,000 executives by Sentry, a business insurance company. Among survey respondents, 47% citing economic uncertainty as their biggest concern.
"We have what I would describe as a robust but frozen labor market," Gregory Daco, chief economist at EY-Parthenon, told The New York Times, noting that while unemployment remains low, there's very little churn or employee turnover as "businesses are being cautious as to how they manage their work force."
Moody's Analytics projects monthly payroll gains could slow to around 100,000 by year-end.
The big story: Potential for economic headwinds grows
Behind the "Now Hiring" signs and modest unemployment rate, there's growing concern on Main Street that the economy might be more fragile than it appears.
"You've already got companies hiring as if they're in a recession—even if they're not laying people off," Oliver Allen, senior U.S. economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, told CNN. Average unemployment duration, a lagging indicator, rose from 20.8 weeks in January 2024 to 22 in January of this year.
Tightening trade regulations and federal trimming could also have an impact on the job market. Experts predict the U.S. gross domestic product could take a hit due to increased tariffs. The U.S. government is the country's largest employer and contributes 36% to the GDP.
Sudden cuts to federal spending advocated by the new administration could hit the economy hard. One example of the potential fallout is that if prices were to increase further due to higher tariffs, consumer purchasing power would decline, stymieing economic growth.
Whether the effects of slashing the workforce and the budget will be exceeded by Trump's plans to loosen business regulations and cut taxes remains to be seen.
To get a better idea of your community's current economy, read on to see the counties with the highest unemployment in Illinois.
50. Cass County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.1%
--- 1-month change: -0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,784 people (239 unemployed)
44. Gallatin County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: -0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,016 people (84 unemployed)
44. Stephenson County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: -0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 20,722 people (880 unemployed)
44. De Witt County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: -0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,465 people (314 unemployed)
44. Whiteside County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: -0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 27,327 people (1,136 unemployed)
44. Marion County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: -0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 16,476 people (685 unemployed)
44. Saline County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: -0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 9,822 people (414 unemployed)
41. McDonough County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.3%
--- 1-month change: -0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 12,900 people (552 unemployed)
41. Clark County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.3%
--- 1-month change: -0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,119 people (306 unemployed)
41. Carroll County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.3%
--- 1-month change: +0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 6,969 people (297 unemployed)
36. Fayette County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: 0.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 9,551 people (416 unemployed)
36. Will County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: -0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 376,694 people (16,703 unemployed)
36. Wayne County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: -0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 6,815 people (299 unemployed)
36. Hardin County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: -1.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,501 people (66 unemployed)
36. Christian County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: -0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 13,238 people (585 unemployed)
31. Johnson County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: -0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,147 people (187 unemployed)
31. Mercer County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: -0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,329 people (332 unemployed)
31. Cook County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: -0.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,716,264 people (122,518 unemployed)
31. Montgomery County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: -0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 11,126 people (498 unemployed)
31. Lake County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: +0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 362,646 people (16,454 unemployed)
28. Knox County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.6%
--- 1-month change: -0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 19,845 people (916 unemployed)
28. Tazewell County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.6%
--- 1-month change: +0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 60,977 people (2,776 unemployed)
28. Clay County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.6%
--- 1-month change: -0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,621 people (260 unemployed)
20. Stark County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,307 people (108 unemployed)
20. Ogle County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 23,364 people (1,105 unemployed)
20. Logan County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: -0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 10,964 people (520 unemployed)
20. Marshall County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,991 people (233 unemployed)
20. Franklin County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: -0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 15,826 people (744 unemployed)
20. Lawrence County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: -0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,888 people (232 unemployed)
20. Kane County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 265,221 people (12,490 unemployed)
20. Schuyler County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,080 people (146 unemployed)
16. Henry County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
--- 1-month change: -0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 23,083 people (1,110 unemployed)
16. Winnebago County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
--- 1-month change: -0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 131,252 people (6,334 unemployed)
16. Perry County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
--- 1-month change: -0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,575 people (364 unemployed)
16. Union County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
--- 1-month change: +0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,145 people (344 unemployed)
14. Mason County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: +0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: 0.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,866 people (288 unemployed)
14. Grundy County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: -0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 26,873 people (1,317 unemployed)
12. Fulton County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5%
--- 1-month change: +0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 14,341 people (711 unemployed)
12. Kankakee County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5%
--- 1-month change: -0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 51,649 people (2,603 unemployed)
9. Rock Island County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
--- 1-month change: -0.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 66,093 people (3,354 unemployed)
9. Bureau County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
--- 1-month change: 0.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 15,065 people (775 unemployed)
9. Putnam County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
--- 1-month change: +0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,970 people (151 unemployed)
7. Peoria County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.2%
--- 1-month change: -0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: 0.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 80,982 people (4,237 unemployed)
7. LaSalle County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.2%
--- 1-month change: +0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 50,790 people (2,623 unemployed)
6. Macon County
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.3%
--- 1-month change: -0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 44,203 people (2,324 unemployed)
5. Vermilion County
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.4%
--- 1-month change: -0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: 0.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 31,345 people (1,706 unemployed)
4. Boone County
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.6%
--- 1-month change: +0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -1.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 24,699 people (1,378 unemployed)
2. Alexander County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.8%
--- 1-month change: -0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,844 people (107 unemployed)
2. Scott County (tie)
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.8%
--- 1-month change: +1.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: 0.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,285 people (132 unemployed)
1. Pulaski County
December unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.7%
--- 1-month change: -0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,605 people (107 unemployed)
This story features data reporting by Karim Noorani, writing by Ben Popken, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.
