Over 19K Illinois workers were part of mass layoffs in 2023. These companies let people go

Hundreds of thousands of U.S. residents lost their jobs to layoffs last year, and Illinoisans were no exception.

U.S. and Illinois laws require employers of a certain size to provide a 60-day notice in advance of mass layoffs or plant closings.

Illinois law is a little more “employee-friendly” than the federal regulations, Teri Ross, executive director of Illinois Legal Aid Online, said in an interview with the News-Democrat. The Illinois Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act requires employers in the state with 75 or more full-time employees to provide 60 days of notice in advance of mass layoffs or plant closures.

A “mass layoff” as defined by the Illinois WARN Act is the reduction of at least 25 full-time employees if they make up at least a third of the company’s workforce or at least 250 employees.

The federal WARN Act only applies to companies with 100 or more employees.

While Illinois law does not provide a right to severance, it’s something that’s commonly included in collective bargaining agreements, Ross said, so some union workers are entitled to it. A severance provision can also be included in an employment contract.

Illinois offers increased benefits to workers with new measures in place this year, including a higher minimum wage than other Midwest states and a right to paid time off for most employees.

About 6.3 million U.S. residents are unemployed, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports, and some industries have seen higher layoff rates than others. Employment numbers are up in health care, government, social assistance and construction, the bureau reports, and the transportation and warehousing industries lost jobs.

How many Illinoisans were laid off in 2023?

More than 19,000 layoffs were reported in the Land of Lincoln in 2023, according to Illinois WARN Act notices.

This number does not include employees who were laid off at smaller companies that are exempt from the state’s WARN Act, so the actual number of people who were laid off is greater.

Here’s how Illinois layoffs compared in each month of 2023:

January: 1,519 employees laid off

• Amount Inc. in Cook County laid off 130 people

• Evolent Health in Cook County laid off 461 people (between two rounds of layoffs)

• HGS USA LLC in DuPage County laid off 156 people

• Illinois Central School Bus in Kankakee County laid off 67 people

• Mechanical Servants LLC in DuPage County laid off 54 people

• State Farm in McLean County laid off 451 people

• Wells Fargo in Sangamon County laid off 140 people

• Fareva Morton Grove Inc. in Cook County laid off 60 people

February: 1,511 employees laid off

• Aerotek at Abbott Laboratories in Lake County laid off 623 people

• Akorn Operating Co. LLC at locations in Gurnee, Vernon Hills and Decatur laid off 611 people

• Cascades Specialty Products Group in Kane County laid off 26 people

• Customized Distribution Services Inc. in Madison County laid off 125 people

• Heritage Operations Group LLC in McLean County laid off 69 people

• HGS USA LLC in DuPage County laid off 57 people

March: 560 employees laid off

• American Water Resources LLC in Madison County (Alton) laid off 34 people

• Glassdoor Inc. in Cook County laid off 26 people

• Impact Fulfillment Services in Madison County (Edwardsville) laid off 45 people

• Inland Bank & Trust in DuPage County laid off 54 people

• Walmart in St. Clair County (Cahokia) laid off 124 people

• Elite Staffing Inc. at McKesson Corp. in Kankakee County laid off 112 people

• Evolent Health in Cook County laid off 23 people

• Friendship Senior Options in Kane County laid off 141 people

• Wells Fargo in Sangamon County laid off one person

April: 1,616 employees laid off

• AmeriMark Interactive LLC in Lake County laid off 212 people

• CJ Logistics America LLC in Will County laid off 82 people

• Compass Group USA Inc. in Cook County laid off 50 people

• Flanders Corp. in Kankakee County laid off 112 people

• Glen-Gery Corp. in LaSalle County laid off 38 people

• LTD Commodities LLC in Kane County laid off 234 people

• Makita U.S.A. Inc. in Cook County laid off 26 people

• Newell Brands Inc. in Stephenson County laid off 75 people

• Four Walmart locations in Chicago laid off a total of 764 people

• Wells Fargo in Sangamon County laid off 23 people

May: 1,749 employees laid off

• Enlivant ES LLC in Cook County laid off 284 people

• Parsec Inc. in Will County laid off 434 people

• Pitney Bowes Inc. in Cook County laid off 73 people

• ProMedica Health System in Cook County laid off 74 people

• The Hope Learning Academy Chicago in Cook County laid off 53 people

• Tyson Foods locations in Chicago and Downers Grove laid off a total of 228 people

• Walgreens sites in Deerfield and Chicago laid off a total of 504 people

• WestRock Co. in Cook County laid off 48 people

• Elite Staffing Inc. at McKesson Corp. in Kankakee County laid off 50 people

• Wells Fargo in Sangamon County laid off one person

June: 1,129 people laid off

• Aramark Campus LLC in Cook County laid off 75 people

• AT&T in Peoria laid off 34 people

• Autism Home Support Services sites in Northbrook, Arlington Heights, Rockford, Naperville, Schaumburg, Springfield and Chicago laid off a total of 306 people

• Cornerstone Building Brands in Cook County laid off 274 people

• Matthew Warren Inc. in Cook County laid off 44 people

• Walgreens in Edwardsville laid off 393 people

• Reditus Laboratories LLC in Tazewell County laid off three people

July: 364 people laid off

• Christian Horizons Living LLC at The Christian Village in Logan County laid off 101 people

• Methode Electronics Inc. in Cook County laid off 28 people

• Pfizer in Lake County laid off 69 people

• Swissport Fueling in Chicago laid off 66 people

• Zurn Elkay Water Solutions in Cook County laid off 100 people

August: 5,307 people laid off

• AGB Investigative Services Inc. in Chicago laid off 311 people

• ASM Global at McCormick Place in Chicago laid off 192 people

• Berry Global Inc. in McHenry laid off 82 people

• CJ Logistics America LLC in Will County laid off 79 people

• Clearwave Fiber in Saline County laid off 38 people

• CVS Health sites in Buffalo Grove, Chicago, Downers Grove and Northbrook laid off a total of 311 people

• Federal Express Corp. in Marion laid off 32 people

• Menasha Packaging Co. locations in Alsip, Edwardsville and Minooka laid off a total of 143 people

• Providence Life Services (Village Woods Senior Living Community) in Will County laid off 82 people

• Radial Inc. in Will County laid off 42 people

• Savor Inc. at McCormick Place in Chicago laid off 951 people

• Solo Cup Operating Corp. in Urbana laid off 138 people

• Yellow Corp. in “statewide locations” laid off 2,900 people due to bankruptcy

• AT&T in Peoria laid off six people

September: 651 people laid off

• Heartland Alliance in Chicago laid off 48 people

• Menasha Packaging Co. in Chicago laid off 128 people

• MV Transportation Inc. in Cook County laid off 90 people

• Sodexo Inc. at Lake Forest Academy in Lake County laid off 43 people

• T-Mobile USA Inc. in Downers Grove laid off 82 people total between two layoffs

• Volition Games LLC in Champaign laid off 183 people

• WestRock Co. in Cook County laid off 73 people

• Walgreens in Lake County laid off four people

October: 1,421 people laid off

• Aspire Bakeries LLC in Cook County laid off 243 people

• Becton, Dickinson and Co. in Lake County laid off 72 people

• Heartland Alliance Health in Chicago laid off 40 people on a “temporary” basis

• Mars Wrigley in Chicago laid off 282 people

• Two Quad/Graphics Marketing LLC sites in Effingham laid off a total of 345 people

• Signature Room in Chicago laid off 170 people

• Silgan Containers in Vermilion County laid off 70 people on a “temporary” basis

• VRC Engineered Solutions in Cook County laid off 111 people

• CVS Health locations in Buffalo Grove, Downers Grove and Northbrook laid off a total of 40 people

• Heartland Alliance in Chicago laid off 48 people

November: 2,353 people laid off

• Castle Credit Co. Holdings LLC in Chicago laid off 78 people

• Eddie V’s in Chicago laid off 59 people

• Grand Lux Café LLC in Chicago laid off 175 people

• Monterey Mushrooms in Bureau County laid off 329 people

• Talis Biomedical Corp. in Chicago laid off 30 people

• TransUnion in Chicago laid off 339 people

• US Steel/Granite City Works in Granite City laid off 1,076 people

• Walgreens in DuPage County laid off 97 people

• Walgreens in Lake County laid off 170 people

December: 911 people laid off

• Dovenmuehle Mortgage Inc. in Lake County laid off 212 people

• Evapco Inc. in Jasper County laid off 25 people

• Ground Services International Inc. laid off 115 people

• Group O Inc. in Rock Island laid off 87 people

• HMSHost in Chicago laid off 127 people

• Motivate LLC in Chicago laid off 202 people

• SCP in Kane County laid off 141 people

• Heartland Alliance Health in Chicago laid off two people

Unemployment resources

Illinois residents who are laid off are generally able to apply for unemployment insurance, so long as they are actively seeking work. If you have a spouse or family member you live with who is still employed, their earnings will be taken into consideration when you apply for funds.

“As long as you weren’t fired for misconduct or you didn’t quit, then you should be able to receive unemployment insurance,” Ross said.

You can apply online for unemployment insurance and call 1-800-244-5631 with any questions.

More resources for people experiencing unemployment or otherwise needing financial assistance include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Medical Assistance and Cash Assistance programs through the Illinois Department of Human Services. You can apply for these programs online and can call 1-800-843-6154 for help applying or to answer any questions.