Unemployment climbed from 6.0% to 6.5% from January to February in LaSalle, Bureau, and Putnam counties. The February 2022 rate was 5.9%.
The Illinois Department of Employment Security says over the year, the three-county region lost 875 non-farm jobs. Construction jobs took the biggest hit with a drop of 750. The leisure-hospitality sector had a gain of 325 locally over the year. At 6.5% in February, one in about 15 people who wanted to work didn’t have jobs.
The breakdown by county: LaSalle County’s unemployment rate climbed from 6.2% in January to 6.6% in February. Bureau County’s went from 5.6% to 6.0%. Putnam County’s went down. It was 6.4% in January and 6.2% in February. Combining the three, the state says the rate was 6.0% in January and 6.5% in February. Grundy County, in a different statistical area, saw a rate drop from 6.3% to 5.3%.