llinois’ working-age adult population, from which the workforce is drawn, has grown by nearly 300,000 since the start of the recession. Despite this growth in the working-age population, the Illinois workforce has shrunk by 226,000 over the same period. This leaves a gap of more than 500,000 working-age Illinoisans who either dropped out of the workforce or never entered it. Full report is linked here.   via Illinois’ real unemployment rate – Illinois Policy Institute.

Two reports released late last week question whether the rewards are proportionate to the risk. They show that unpensioned teachers can be outstanding, and that upfront cash may function more efficiently as a hiring incentive. http://www.publicsectorinc.org/2014/10/pensions-are-unnecessary-to-attract-good-teachers/

Amazon.com and state officials will announce plans for new facilities in the Chicagoland region that would employ at least 1,000 people within three years, according to the state’s economic development agency. http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-confidential-amazon-illinois-1028-biz-20141028-column.html

The problem of freight congestion blocking passenger trains is affecting Amtrak service across the Midwest and also stretching from Chicago — Amtrak’s busiest hub — to the East Coast, officials said. via Amtrak: Delays up, ridership down in Illinois – Chicago Tribune.

A survey of more than 1,000 voters by the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University found 71 percent of registered voters favor increasing the state’s $8.25 per hour minimum wage to $10 per hour. http://www.pantagraph.com/business/poll-shows-minimum-wage-hike-popular/article_c9ad5c5d-c75e-50f9-8e05-d8e0493efeb2.html