State jobless rate fell to 4.4 percent in July

The Illinois Department of Employment Security, IDES, on Thursday, Aug. 18, reported the state’s  unemployment rate fell 0.1 of a percentage point to 4.4 percent in July.

Nonfarm payrolls increased by 31,200 in July, based on preliminary data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, BLS, and released by IDES. 

The June unemployment rate was unchanged from the preliminary report, remaining at 4.5 percent. 

The state’s unemployment rate was 0.9 of a percentage point higher than the national unemployment rate reported for July, which was 3.5 percent. That was down 0.1 of a percentage point from the previous month.