Illinois e-News Release
FOR RELEASE:
January 15, 2026
CONTACT:
Rebecca Cisco | 217.299.8692
Unemployment Rate Up in Majority of Metro Areas for November, Chicago Sees Continued Job Growth
Chicago Hits Record Number of November Jobs and 17 Consecutive Months of Year-Over-Year Growth
SPRINGFIELD – Over-the-year, total nonfarm jobs decreased in 8 metropolitan areas and increased in 4, leading to consecutive months with year-over-year growth in Chicago (17 consecutive months) and Lake (6 consecutive months). Over-the-year, the unemployment rate increased in 10 metro areas and decreased in 2 for the year ending November 2025, according to data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Illinois Department of Employment Security (DES). The was no October 2025 metro area release due to the federal government shutdown.
“Chicago’s job market remains resilient, reaching a record number of November jobs and sustaining nearly a year and a half of growth,” said Deputy Governor Andy Manar. “However, uncertainty coming out of Washington is driving higher unemployment in many metro areas, and Illinois will continue making smart, long-term investments to strengthen our workforce and support employers statewide.”
The metro areas which posted the largest over-the-year percentage decreases in total nonfarm jobs were the Davenport-Moline-Rock Island MSA, IL Section (-2.0%, - 1,800), the Bloomington MSA (-1.5%, -1,500), and a tie between the Elgin MSA (-1.4%, -4,100) and the Kankakee MSA (-1.4%, -600). The metro areas which had the largest over-the-year percentage increases in total nonfarm jobs were the Lake County Metro Division (+0.6%, +2,000), the Chicago-Naperville-Schaumburg Metro Division (+0.5%, +17,500), and the Decatur MSA (+0.4%, +200). Industries that saw job growth in the majority of the twelve metro areas included: Mining and Construction and Private Education and Health Services (eleven areas each).
The metro areas with the largest unemployment rate increases were a tie between the Decatur MSA (+0.8 point to 6.0%) and the Kankakee MSA (+0.8 point to 5.7%), followed by Champaign-Urbana MSA (+0.7 point to 4.2%). The metro areas with unemployment rate decreases were the Chicago-Naperville-Schaumburg Metro Division (-0.3 point to 4.5%) and the Davenport-Moline-Rock Island MSA, IL Section (-0.1 point to 5.0%). The unemployment rate increased over-the-year in 94 counties, decreased in 7 counties, and was unchanged in 1 county.
| Not Seasonally Adjusted Unemployment Rates |
| Metropolitan Area | November 2025* | November 2024** | Over-the-Year Change |
| Bloomington | 4.0% | 3.5% | 0.5 |
| Champaign-Urbana | 4.2% | 3.5% | 0.7 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Schaumburg | 4.5% | 4.8% | -0.3 |
| Davenport-Moline-Rock Island (IL Section) | 5.0% | 5.1% | -0.1 |
| Decatur | 6.0% | 5.2% | 0.8 |
| Elgin | 4.5% | 4.0% | 0.5 |
| Kankakee | 5.7% | 4.9% | 0.8 |
| Lake | 4.6% | 4.1% | 0.5 |
| Peoria | 4.8% | 4.3% | 0.5 |
| Rockford | 5.3% | 4.7% | 0.6 |
| Springfield | 4.3% | 3.8% | 0.5 |
| St. Louis (IL Section) | 4.3% | 3.7% | 0.6 |
| Illinois Statewide | 4.6% | 4.5% | 0.1 |
| * Preliminary I ** Revised |
Total Nonfarm Jobs (Not Seasonally Adjusted) – November 2025
| Metropolitan Area | November | November | Over-the-Year |
| | 2025* | 2024** | Change |
| Bloomington | 95,300 | 96,800 | -1,500 |
| Champaign-Urbana | 123,700 | 124,500 | -800 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Schaumburg | 3,852,400 | 3,834,900 | 17,500 |
| Davenport-Moline-Rock Island (IL Section) | 86,800 | 88,600 | -1,800 |
| Decatur | 47,600 | 47,400 | 200 |
| Elgin | 297,000 | 301,100 | -4,100 |
| Kankakee | 42,900 | 43,500 | -600 |
| Lake | 348,900 | 346,900 | 2,000 |
| Peoria | 173,200 | 174,600 | -1,400 |
| Rockford | 147,500 | 147,700 | -200 |
| Springfield | 112,600 | 112,800 | -200 |
| St. Louis (IL Section) | 244,100 | 243,700 | 400 |
| Illinois Statewide | 6,199,800 | 6,208,600 | -8,800 |
| *Preliminary | **Revised |
Not Seasonally Adjusted Unemployment Rates (percent) for Local Counties and Areas
| Labor Market Area | Nov 2025 | Nov 2024 | Over-the-Year Change |
| Chicago-Naperville-Schaumburg, IL Metro Division |
| Cook County | 4.7 % | 5.1 % | -0.4 |
| DuPage County | 3.9 % | 4.0 % | -0.1 |
| Grundy County | 4.0 % | 4.6 % | -0.6 |
| McHenry County | 3.9 % | 4.1 % | -0.2 |
| Will County | 4.3 % | 4.6 % | -0.3 |
| Elgin, IL Metro Division |
| DeKalb County | 4.4 % | 3.9 % | 0.5 |
| Kane County | 4.6 % | 4.1 % | 0.5 |
| Kendall County | 4.3 % | 3.8 % | 0.5 |
| Lake County, IL Metro Division |
| Lake County | 4.6 % | 4.1 % | 0.5 |
| Kankakee, IL MSA |
| Kankakee County | 5.7 % | 4.9 % | 0.8 |
| Cities | | | |
| Aurora City | 4.5 % | 4.2 % | 0.3 |
| Chicago City | 4.9 % | 5.2 % | -0.3 |
| Elgin City | 5.1 % | 4.8 % | 0.3 |
| Joliet City | 4.9 % | 5.2 % | -0.3 |
| Kankakee City | 7.5 % | 6.9 % | 0.6 |
| Naperville City | 3.8 % | 4.0 % | -0.2 |
Chicago-Naperville-Schaumburg, IL Metro Division
The not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased to 4.5 percent in November 2025 from 4.8 percent in November 2024.
Total nonfarm employment increased +17,500 compared to November 2024. The Government (+18,500), Private Education-Health Services (+17,700), Construction (+3,700), Information (+1,900), Financial Activities (+1,800) and Transportation-Warehousing-Utilities (+600) sectors had payroll gains over-the-year. The Professional-Business Services (-11,100), Retail Trade (-6,200), Manufacturing (-4,800), Other Services (-2,000), Leisure-Hospitality (-1,600) and Wholesale Trade (-1,000) sectors had employment declines from a year ago.
Elgin, IL Metro Division
The not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 4.5 percent in November 2025 from 4.0 percent in November 2024.
Total nonfarm employment decreased -4,100 compared to November 2024. The Private Education-Health Services (+800), Construction (+600) and Government (+500) sectors had payroll gains over-the-year. The Leisure-Hospitality (-1,500), Retail Trade (-1,300), Professional-Business Services (-1,200), Manufacturing (-1,100), Wholesale Trade (-400), Other Services (-300) and Financial Activities (-200) sectors had employment declines from a year ago.
Lake County, IL Metro Division
The not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 4.6 percent in November 2025 from 4.1 percent in November 2024.
Total nonfarm employment increased +2,000 compared to November 2024. The Leisure-Hospitality (+2,400), Private Education-Health Services (+900), Construction (+700), Transportation-Warehousing-Utilities (+200) and Government (+200) sectors had payroll gains over-the-year. The Retail Trade (-1,300), Professional-Business Services (-300), Other Services (-300), Financial Activities (-200), Wholesale Trade (-200) and Information (-100) sectors had employment declines from a year ago.
Kankakee, IL MSA
The not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 5.7 percent in November 2025 from 4.9 percent in November 2024.
Total nonfarm employment decreased -600 compared to November 2024. The Private Education-Health Services (+500) and Mining-Construction (+200) sectors had payroll gains over-the-year. The Manufacturing (-500), Government (-400), Other Services (-100), Transportation-Warehousing-Utilities (-100), Financial Activities (-100) and Leisure-Hospitality (-100) sectors had employment declines from a year ago.
Note: Monthly 2024 unemployment rates and total nonfarm jobs for Illinois metro areas were revised in February and March 2025, as required by the U.S. BLS. Comments and tables distributed for prior metro area news releases should be discarded as any records or historical analysis previously cited may no longer be valid.
Disclaimer: The data contained in the metro area employment numbers press releases are not seasonally adjusted, and therefore are subject to seasonal fluctuations due to factors such as changes in weather, harvests, major holidays and school schedules. Current monthly metro data should be compared to the same month from prior years (January 2025 data compared to January 2024 data) as data for these months have similar seasonal patterns. Comparisons should not be made to data for the immediate previous month or other previous non-matching months, as any changes in the data within these time periods may be the result of seasonal fluctuations and not economic factors.
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