Labor Force / Employment in Southwestern Illinois
Labor Force & Unemployment Labor force is defined as those individuals, employed or looking for work, who live in the area represented. The labor force in Southwestern Illinois represented 266,880 individuals in 2006, up from 260,082 in 2005, a 2.5 % increase, while the unemployment rate dropped slightly to 5.4%. This labor force accounts for approximately 17.5 percent of the St. Louis Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area (SMSA) total. “According to Expansion Management and Logistics Today magazines’ 6th Annual logistics quotient study, the St. Louis region tops the list of best regions for Transportation and Warehousing Work Force for the second consecutive year."		LABOR FORCE   2006 Madison County   140,570 St. Clair County   126,310 Southwestern Illinois   266,880       TOTAL EMPLOYED     Madison County   133,663 St. Clair County   119,024 Southwestern Illinois   252,687       UNEMPLOYMENT RATE     Madison County   4.9 St. Clair County   5.8 Southwestern Illinois   5.4       Source: Illinois Department of Employment Security - Average for all of 2006

Private Sector Employment by Industrial Classification

Southwestern Illinois saw its private sector employment rates rise slightly from 2005 to 2006 with a net gain of 1756 jobs. The total number of good producing jobs in Southwestern Illinois has remained relatively stable in recent years, while service-providing jobs continue to increase across our region. In 2006, service-providing jobs represented just over 80% of the total number of jobs in Southwestern Illinois.

Southwestern Illinois 2006 Work Force

Work force is defined as those who work in the area represented, but may live elsewhere. A total of 252,687 individuals are employed in Madison and St. Clair counties with 158,228 of these in the private sector. During 2006, 30,854 individuals held jobs in the goods-producing sectors and 127,374 were employed in the service-providing sectors. As in 2005, the Trade/Transportation/Utilities sector accounts for more than one quarter of the total number of jobs in Southwestern Illinois.

(Totals may not equal one-hundred percent due to rounding)

*Though not one company, Rivers Edge (old Mel Price Depot) is currently supporting over 600 jobs.

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