Peoria, Ill — The latest state unemployment report shows the Peoria area lost about 200 jobs in the month of October, 2021 but has added nearly two thousand jobs since October of last year.
Total Non-farm employment for the Peoria MSA (Metro Statistical Area), which includes communities in Peoria, Marshall, Woodford, Stark, and Tazewell Counties, came in at roughly 164,600, according to the IDES report released Wednesday.
It’s 200 jobs fewer than September, 2021, but beats October, 2020 by more than 1,800 jobs.
Peoria also saw a non-seasonally adjusted jobless rate drop 1.6% last month.
Unemployment now stands at 4.7% for the Peoria MSA.
Across the state of Illinois, the report shows, unemployment is also down year-over-year.
It’s the seventh straight month we’ve seen that.
Statewide unemployment now stands at 5%
The information comes from preliminary data released Wednesday from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and Illinois Department of Employment Security.
It shows Peoria County is among roughly a dozen Illinois counties with 5% or higher rates of unemployment.
That list also includes Cooke County and Macon County.
Across Illinois, rural areas continue to see the lowest jobless rates, running anywhere from 2.5% in Monroe County in southern Illinois to rates approaching 4% in nearby counties like Fulton and Marshall.
Nearby Bloomington-Normal and Champaign-Urbana metro areas are faring slightly better with October unemployment rates around 3.7% and 3.6% respectively.
The jobless rate around Decatur remains among the highest in the state at 6.1%.
