New U.S. Department of Labor data shows an additional 74,476 Illinoisans filed for unemployment the week ending May 2, bringing total new jobless claims to 950,029 since COVID-19 began shutting down the economy.
The sudden halt in economic activity following Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s order to close “non-essential” businesses has caused the state’s unemployment rate to surge to an estimated 19.6%, or a total of 1.23 million workers when those idled since COVID-19 are added to those out of work before the pandemic. For context, the state’s unemployment rate – not seasonally adjusted – peaked at 12.2% during the Great Recession.
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