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IDES: Bloomington-Normal added 6,000 jobs in the last year

Kohl's hiring sign
Emily Bollinger
/
WGLT
Bloomington-Normal has added 6,000 jobs since February 2021.

Bloomington-Normal saw more job growth in February.

Data from the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) show the Twin Cities added 6,000 jobs over the last year as the economy continues its recovery from the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The biggest gains were in professional and business services (2,100 net jobs), followed by leisure and hospitality (1,600) and government (1,500).

Financial activities saw the worst job losses, down 400 since February of last year.

Bloomington-Normal's unemployment rate dipped to 3.9% last month. That’s down from 4.1% in January and 5.6% in February 2021. Champaign-Urbana is the only metro area in Illinois with a lower unemployment rate at 3.8%.

Bloomington-Normal’s workforce grew to 92,400 last month, according to IDES. That's up from 91,500 in January.

Statewide, the unemployment rate fell in all 14 metro areas for the 11th consecutive month. The jobless rate statewide is 5%.

The highest jobless rate in the state is in Rockford at 7.9%.

Eric Stock is the News Director at WGLT. You can contact Eric at ejstoc1@ilstu.edu.
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