Illinois Layoffs — December 2018
Employers in Illinois filed 8 WARN Act notices in December 2018, impacting roughly 1,238 workers — representing a notable rise over November and up 237% versus December 2017. The average filing covered 155 workers, with 0 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 5 | 882 |
| Healthcare | 1 | 128 |
| Finance & Insurance | 1 | 116 |
| Information & Technology | 1 | 112 |
The Manufacturing sector led the way in workforce reductions with 882 workers across 5 notices. In a parallel development, Healthcare reported 128 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Cook | 3 | 623 |
| Will | 1 | 225 |
| Mclean | 2 | 146 |
| Sangamon | 1 | 128 |
| DuPage | 1 | 116 |
Cook was the epicenter of layoff activity, accounting for 50% of all affected workers with 623 workers across 3 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| O Chicago | 1 | 362 |
| Bolingbrook | 1 | 225 |
| Skokie | 1 | 149 |
| Springfield | 1 | 128 |
| Lombard | 1 | 116 |
Layoff Type Analysis
Layoff type classification was not available for filings in Illinois this month.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tower Automotive | O Chicago | 362 | ||
| West Liberty Foods | Bolingbrook | 225 | ||
| Castwell Products | Skokie | 149 | ||
| Vibra Hospital of Springfield | Springfield | 128 | ||
| Bridgeview Bank Mortgage | Lombard | 116 | ||
| Kerry | Gridley | 113 | ||
| Cars.com | Chicago | 112 | ||
| DuPont | Colfax | 33 |
The single largest action involved Tower Automotive at its O Chicago facility, reporting 362 affected workers. West Liberty Foods followed with 225 workers.
Trend & Outlook
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
The data underscores mounting pressure on the Illinois labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Manufacturing sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Illinois. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act requires employers with 100+ employees to provide 60-day advance notice of mass layoffs and plant closings. Data is updated daily by WARN Firehose. View all Illinois WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.