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News and Announcements

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Job Growth Continues to Lag Nation in Most Metro Areas - Unemployment rate drops in all metro areas

​9/21/17 - Unemployment rates decreased over-the-year in August in all of Illinois’s metropolitan areas and all but one county, according to preliminary data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES). Data also show nonfarm jobs increased in twelve of the metropolitan areas and decreased in two.

“More areas showed job gains in August, but the pace of growth is not where we would like it to be,” said IDES Director Jeff Mays. “While it is encouraging that unemployment rates declined from last year, most areas in Illinois are still higher than the national average.”

Employment Security Advisory Board Meeting

​9/18/17 - This agenda for the Video/Teleconference Meeting, on September 21, 2017, at 10:00 A.M., conforms to the requirements of Section 2.02 of the Illinois Open Meetings Act (5 ILCS 120/02). Any individual planning to attend who will need an accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act should notify the ADA coordinator at (312) 793-9290 or (888) 340-1007 (TTY/Texnet).​

Illinois Job Growth Stuck in Neutral - August Unemployment Rate Increases Slightly

​​9/14/17 - IDES announced today that the unemployment rate increased +0.2 percentage points to 5.0 percent in August and nonfarm payrolls decreased by -3,700 jobs over-the-month, based on preliminary data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and released by IDES. July job growth was revised down to show an increase of +600 jobs rather than the preliminary estimate of +2,100 jobs.

“The Illinois economy is stuck in neutral with hardly any growth over the past several months,” said IDES Director Jeff Mays. “As a result, this has caused the state to experience a rising unemployment rate over the past three months.”

​See more News and Announcements ...​

MyTax Illinois Unemployment Insurance Transition is Complete​

On Monday, September 11, the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) successfully transitioned the Unemployment Insurance (UI) tax process over to the MyTax Illinois portal.  By working with the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR), more than 350,000 Illinois employers can now take advantage of MyTax Illinois to handle all State of Illinois tax processes.

As soon as MyTax Illinois was available, Illinois employers began filing their monthly and quarterly wage reports, making tax payments and requesting refunds, all online.  So far, more than 100,000 wage reports have been filed, over $4,000,000 in tax payments have been processed and nearly 900 electronic requests for refunds have been received.​
  
The response from the employer community has been both positive and supportive of the modernization effort, which is a much improved tool for employers to better manage their UI tax payments.

“We’re pleased IDES was able to provide a seamless way for Illinois business owners to pay their UI taxes,” said Rob Karr, president and CEO of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association. 

Looking ahead, the final September quarterly UI wage reports are due by Tuesday, October 31.

“We would suggest that you avoid the filing rush and set up your MyTax Illinois account now if you haven’t already and begin to file,” said IDES Director Jeff Mays.  “We strongly recommend that you not wait until the end of the month.”

For the latest transition information, please visit the IDES Employer Update page at www.ides.illinois.gov/MyTaxUI.  If you have any questions, please call the IDES Employer Hotline at (800) 247-4984.



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