Illinois Layoffs: Companies Warn Of 1,200 Job Cuts

ILLINOIS — Multiple Illinois employers have recently issued layoff notices, warning of roughly 1,200 job cuts across the state. Those lost jobs are in addition to 1,000 jobs that will move to Boston as Deerfield-based Takeda closes its Illinois headquarters.

As of July, Illinois' unemployment rate is 4.3 percent, down from 4.5 percent in June and down .8 percent compared with a year ago, according to the Illinois Department of Employment Security.

Under the WARN (Illinois Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) Act, companies must notify the state when they play mass layoffs or closures. Here are the most recent WARN notices for August:

• Acuity Brands Lighting, Des Plaines: 298 workers affected, layoffs will happen between Oct. 5 and Dec. 14
• Aramark Campus Services LLC at University of Chicago, Harvey/Chicago: 369 workers affected, layoffs will happen by Oct. 31
• Auto Releasing Inc, Belvidere: 68 workers affected, layoffs will happen between Sept. 28 and Oct. 13
• Armacell LLC, South Holland: 87 workers affected, layoff date Oct. 14
• Fazal Development Network, Chicago: 147 workers affected, layoffs will happen between Oct. 4 and Oct. 18
• Follett Higher Ed Group, Aurora: 81 workers affected, layoffs will happen between Oct. 26 and Feb. 28, 2019
• Watchter, Inc, Decatur: 85 workers affected, layoffs will happen between Oct. 31 and Nov. 14
• Shop n Save Warehouse Foods, Inc, Collinsville: 60 workers affected, layoff date Sept. 30

Takeda closing Illinois facility

Takeda Pharmaceuticals intends to move about 1,000 remaining employees out of its North American headquarters in Deerfield. Takeda has operated in the Chicago area for more than 40 years.

Last summer, the company moved about 700 of its 1,700 positions to Massachusetts and made a move to sublease one of the buildings.

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