**Statement from Governor Rod R. Blagojevich**

"I was disappointed to see that again the national economic crunch has weighed heavily on industries critical to Illinois' economy.  Numbers out today show that Illinois lost 10,000 construction jobs over the last year - with a capital plan we will create construction jobs, rather than leave these Illinoisans without work. After yesterday, I am cautiously optimistic that the General Assembly is making progress on passing the Illinois Works jobs plan to bring these opportunities to Illinois. We cannot afford to wait any longer for new jobs. We need to do this now."

 

* Information about today's release of June unemployment numbers is available on IDES's website at http://www.ides.state.il.us/.