PRECARIOUS TIMES AT WORK: DETRIMENTAL HOURS AND SCHEDULING IN ILLINOIS AND HOW FAIR WORKWEEK POLICIES WILL IMPROVE WORKERS’ WELL-BEING

This recent survey of over 3,300 Illinois workers provides a unique portrait of eight key dimensions of work hours and schedules, their distribution by types of jobs and workers. These dimensions arecontrasted across 23 different industries — those covered by Chicago’s Fair Workweek ordinance and those uncovered. Findings from this study reinforce the need to … Read more

THE IMPACT OF TEACHER LICENSURE ON STUDENT OUTCOMES: EVIDENCE FROM ILLINOIS EDUCATION TEACHER PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT (EdTPA)

In 2015 Illinois mandated the education Teacher Performance Assessment (edTPA), a performance-based assessment to evaluate teaching readiness, as a part of the teacher licensure requirements. The new requirement aimed to benefit student learning by improving the teaching effectiveness of prospective teachers. This report estimates the effect of teachers hired after 2015 when edTPA was implemented … Read more

THE STATE OF THE UNIONS 2020: A PROFILE OF UNIONIZATION IN CHICAGO, IN ILLINOIS, AND IN THE UNITED STATES 

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a stark reminder that working people keep Illinois’ economy functioning. The workers propping up the economy were largely hourly employees who are protected most by union representation. As Illinois recovers from unprecedented job losses, the labor movement will be essential in protecting and rebuilding the state’s middle class. As Illinois … Read more

TEACHER SHORTAGE AND RACIAL DISPARITY IN ILLINOIS TEACHING PROFESSION: THE EFFECT OF EDTPA

The Illinois State Broad of Education (ISBE) mandated Teacher Performance Assessment (edTPA), a performance-based assessment to evaluate teaching readiness, as a part of the licensure requirements since July 2015. The new examination imposed significant monetary ($300-$1,200 per applicant) and time investments, which had a disproportionate effect on minority prospective teacher candidates. The impact of the … Read more

VETERANS IN THE LABOR MARKET: EXPERIENCES OF THE POST 9/11 GENERATION

Veterans in the Labor Market: Experiences of a Post 9/11 Generation contains the results of a research project that emerged through a community partnership between the Chez Veterans Center’s (CVC) Military Service Knowledge Collaborative at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the Project for Middle Class Renewal at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s School of Labor … Read more

THE IMPACT OF RELAXING NURSE PRACTITIONER LICENSING TO REDUCE COVID MORTALITY

Nurse practitioners (NP) are well-trained health care personnel for primary, acute, and specialty care in the US. However, 32 states have restrictions on their scope of practice and Illinois is one of them. In response to the shortage of health care workers during the coronavirus pandemic, twenty-one states granted NP full practice authority to cope … Read more

ILLINOIS UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANT WORKERS IN THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit the U.S. economy in an unprecedented way. About 20.5 million people have lost their jobs. In April the unemployment rate had already skyrocketed to 14.7%. In this report, we chronicle the employment conditions, health insurance coverage, and wages of Illinois’ vulnerable undocumented immigrant workers. We then propose adopting a form … Read more

THE EFFECTS OF THE GLOBAL PANDEMIC ON ILLINOIS WORKERS

The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed a range of structural economic and public health inequities. On the one hand, the lowest-paid workers– higher shares of whom are women and people of color– are generally at the highest risk of becoming infected, unemployed, and uninsured. On the other hand, many middle- class workers have kept the economy … Read more

IMPLEMENTING A WORK-SHARE PROGRAM IN ILLINOIS

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has brought the economy to a grinding halt. Businesses have temporarily closed and unemployment has substantially increased. While unprecedented actions have already been taken by the federal government and the State of Illinois, additional changes may be needed to stabilize the economy. This report considers the economic impacts of Illinois … Read more