Last week ended with bad economic news from the federal government as job growth slowed. And in a new report, Illinois' chief economist Edward Boss says things are even worse here:
"The state, by several measures, when you compare it nationally, seems to be lagging somewhat behind. If you look at the unemployment rate, et cetera, we have a higher level than the national rate."
The federal unemployment rate is eight-point-one percent. In Illinois, that figure is eight-point-eight percent.
Boss says Illinois' unemployment rate is usually a little higher than the nation as a whole. But he would have expected that to work itself out in the three years since the recession. Boss says the state's persistently higher rate of unemployment is something of a mystery.
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