Employment rose in 9 of the 11 largest counties in Illinois for which data were available from December 2022 to December 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are those with annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more in 2022.) Regional Commissioner Jason Palmer noted that McLean County had the largest over-the-year increase in employment at 2.4 percent. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

  

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Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in covered employment among the largest counties in Illinois, December 2023

County	Percent change, December 2023
McLean	2.4
Peoria	1.0
Champaign	0.9
St. Clair	0.9
McHenry	0.7
Cook	0.6
Winnebago	0.5
Lake	0.2
Sangamon	0.2
Will	-0.1
Madison	-0.2

National employment increased 1.5 percent over the year, with 318 of the 360 largest U.S. counties reporting gains. Hays, TX, had the largest increase in employment (+5.0 percent). Elkhart, IN, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment (-6.9 percent).

Among the 13 largest counties in Illinois, employment was highest in Cook County (2,581,000) in December 2023. Within Cook County’s private industry, health care and social assistance accounted for the largest employment. Together, the 13 largest Illinois counties accounted for 80.1 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 360 largest counties made up 73.0 percent of total U.S. employment.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 89 counties in Illinois with employment below 75,000. Wage levels in 87 of the 89 smaller counties were below the national average of $1,435 in the fourth quarter of 2023. (See table 2.)

All 13 large Illinois counties reported average weekly wage gains from the fourth quarter of 2022 to the fourth quarter of 2023. (See chart 2.) Lake County had the largest gain (+6.0 percent), followed by Champaign County (+5.3 percent) and Sangamon County (+4.3 percent). Over-the-year wage gains among Illinois’ other 10 large counties ranged from 4.0 percent to 0.3 percent.

  

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Chart 2. Over-the-year percent change in covered average weekly wages among the largest counties in Illinois, fourth quarter 2023

County	Percent change, fourth quarter 2023
Lake	6.0
Champaign	5.3
Sangamon	4.3
Kane	4.0
St. Clair	3.8
Cook	3.3
Peoria	2.3
Madison	2.2
DuPage	2.1
Winnebago	1.9
McLean	1.4
McHenry	0.9
Will	0.3

Nationwide, wages increased by 3.6 percent over the year. Among the 360 largest counties in the United States, 348 had over-the-year wage increases. Snohomish, WA, had the largest percentage wage increase (+18.6 percent). Merrimack, NH, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease (-7.2 percent).

Weekly wages in 3 of the 13 largest counties in Illinois were above the national average of $1,435 in the fourth quarter of 2023. Average weekly wages in these counties ranked among the top 75 nationwide: Lake ($1,863, 14^th), Cook ($1,651, 35^th), and DuPage ($1,527, 60^th).

Among the largest U.S. counties, 85 reported average weekly wages at or above the U.S. average in the fourth quarter of 2023. Santa Clara, CA, had the highest average weekly wage ($3,699). Average weekly wages were below the national average in the remaining 275 counties. Hidalgo, TX, had the lowest average weekly wage ($842).

Among the 89 smaller counties in Illinois—those with employment below 75,000—Rock Island ($1,679) and Putnam ($1,675) reported an average weekly wage above the national average. Calhoun County ($610) reported the lowest average weekly wage in the state.

When all 102 counties in Illinois were considered, 22 reported average weekly wages of less than $900, 26 registered wages from $900 to $999, 27 had wages from $1,000 to $1,099, 13 had wages from $1,100 to $1,199, and 14 had average weekly wages of $1,200 or higher. (See map 1.)