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 Regular office hours of 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. will resume Thursday.
Independence Day is celebrated on July 4 in honor of the
Declaration of Independence, which summarily declared sovereignty
from Great Britain. Thomas Jefferson drafted the document between
June 11 and June 28, 1776. The expressed political philosophy of
individual liberty was not new and had been advocated by many. This
time, however, Jefferson presented the tenets as self-evident
truths. The document presents a list of reasons, or grievances,
against Great Britain's king to explain why such a rebellious act
was warranted. The statement was adopted by the Continental Congress
on July 4, 1776.
Although IDES offices will be closed the Fourth of July, services
will be available online at www.ides.illinois.gov. Individuals will
be able to file for first-time unemployment benefits; certify for
benefits, which is necessary to receive payment; and switch the
method of payment to direct deposit. Because July 4 is a federal
banking holiday, the availability of some benefit payments might be
delayed. The IDES does not determine federal banking holidays.
IDES customers also can use the website to manage their benefit
payments. For benefit payments, the department encourages direct
deposit. Direct deposit is a simple, smart and secure way to receive
benefits. A debit card also is available. There are no fees
associated with a debit card at point-of-service counters that
accept MasterCard, such as grocery stores, drugstores and
convenience stores. Cash is available after qualifying purchases.
Fees likely will be assessed with out-of-network ATM machines.
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IDES encourages businesses and individuals to use Illinois
JobLink, at www.illinoisjoblink.com. This is an Internet-based
system that allows businesses to post job ads at no cost. Employers
can create want-ads that require specific skills or search resumes
using keywords such as salary, educational attainment and location.
Individuals can create multiple resumes using keywords to emphasize
skills that target specific jobs in different industries. The
cross-matching approach increases success and reduces costs for both
parties.
The unemployment rate in May, the latest month available, was 8.6
percent. The rate has fallen for nine consecutive months. Illinois
has added 163,300 private-sector jobs since January 2010, when
growth returned to Illinois after nearly two years of monthly
losses.
[Text from
Illinois
Department of Employment Security
file received from
the
Illinois Office of
Communication and Information]
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