Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz – Page 64

Illinois' unemployment rate rose slightly to 6.4 percent in February.

Illinois unemployment rate rises to 6.4 percent in February

June 12, 2018 at 2:05 a.m.

Illinois' unemployment rate ticked up in February to 6.4 percent, even as the state added 18,100 jobs, according to a report Thursday from the Illinois Department of Employment Security. The...

Alejandro Zuniga, from Houston, joins other demonstrators outside the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C., in 2015. The group was urging the Chamber of Commerce to drop its opposition to stricter rules on silica dust exposure.

Workers breathe easier over silica dust rules as construction industry winces

June 11, 2018 at 3:58 a.m.

The Labor Department on Thursday finalized new rules to reduce workers' exposure to silica dust, a common mineral in construction materials that, when breathed in over time, can cause lung...

Johnathan Allen, 24, from left, David Elam, 25, and Antonio Monix, 23, testify at a hearing on youth unemployment hosted by the Chicago Urban League on Jan. 25, 2016.

Youth unemployment stings south suburbs far worse than north

June 11, 2018 at 3:24 a.m.

Disturbing unemployment trends among Chicago youth are mirrored in some Cook County suburbs, including a stark north-south divide. Nearly 40 percent of black 20- to 24-year-olds were both out of...

A growing number of employers are requiring applicants to have a college degree.

No college degree? That’s a growing hurdle to getting hired

June 11, 2018 at 5:18 a.m.

Employers are raising their educational requirements for new hires, a trend that troubles workforce development experts who say it puts jobs out of reach of those who need them most....

Bridget Shafer and co-worker Mark Eikenberry, of Grant Thornton, head for a beer March 16, 2016, as she takes a couple of days off as vacation. Grant Thornton is among the small but growing club of companies offering employees unlimited vacation time.

Vacation time, without borders, gets a try at Chicago companies

June 11, 2018 at 4:52 a.m.

The way it was before, Erin Gallagher had 24 days of paid time off — generous by many standards, but they came with a measure of anxiety. Gallagher, director of...

Arne Duncan animatedly chats with audience members after making his last speech as the U.S. Secretary of Education in the basement of St. Sabina Church in Chicago Wednesday Dec. 30, 2015. Duncan is working with the philanthropic Emerson Collective to build a small team in Chicago focused on creating job opportunities for young black men.

Arne Duncan takes aim at Chicago’s violence with youth jobs initiative

June 12, 2018 at 1:59 a.m.

Arne Duncan is back in Chicago with a new mission: to tackle the desperate unemployment rate among young people, particularly young black men, that he believes is feeding the rising...

The Labor Department has proposed raising to $970 a week, or $50,440 a year, the minimum salary that employees must make before they can be labeled exempt from overtime, up from the current threshold of $23,660 a year.

Federal rule to let more workers collect overtime pay gets final review

June 12, 2018 at 2:17 a.m.

A proposal to extend overtime pay to millions more Americans took a step forward this week. The Labor Department has submitted its overtime rule to the White House's Office of...

A fast-food protest called Speak Out and Strike is held Nov. 10, 2015, in front of the McDonald's restaurant at 1951 N. Western Ave. in Chicago.

Why should McDonald’s be a joint employer? NLRB starts to provide answers

June 9, 2018 at 12:22 a.m.

McDonald's tells its franchisees how to staff restaurants, when to clean the bathrooms and where partially completed orders should be placed on counters, an attorney for the National Labor Relations...

Chicago fast-food cooks, cashiers and their supporters join a strike Nov. 10, 2015, as they march outside a McDonald's restaurant at 35th Street and Indiana Avenue in Chicago. The union-backed Fight for $15 campaign is calling for raising the minimum wage.

Is McDonald’s responsible for franchise workers? Labor law hearing set to begin

June 11, 2018 at 3:28 a.m.

Opening statements are set to begin Thursday in a long-awaited hearing to determine whether McDonald's is liable for alleged labor law violations at some of its franchised stores, a case...

Dane Lyons, an apprentice at Zurich North America, is photographed March 7, 2016, in Zurich's Schaumburg offices. Lyons, 37, had been working in car sales but began the two-year insurance internship in January.

Apprenticeships come to insurance and financial services industries

June 11, 2018 at 5:43 a.m.

Apprenticeships, long a tool of the construction trades, are getting a good look by insurance and financial services leaders as a way to groom skilled workers and grow the talent...

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