The Rockford Park District won a 2012 National Gold Medal Award from the National Recreation and Park Association, recognizing the district as the best in its class.
About the RAEDC              View Newsletters

Labor Shed Analysis


Rockford has the Workforce You Need! Nearly 25% of the Rockford Area workforce is employed in manufacturing, which is twice the national average. The Rockford MSA (~350,000 people) is the fastest growing MSA in the state of Illinois and has been for two consecutive years. This growth is expected to continue. The Rockford region is a community that still understands shift work and values companies that need employees with industrial skills. A recent study by The Pathfinders (Dallas TX), polling Rockford area employers on existing workforce characteristics, found that Rockford’s labor-shed actually consists of a five-county region with a population of over 807,000 individuals and that the workforce was over 435,000 people. This number far exceeds the federal government’s assumption of a two-county MSA population of approximately 350,000 people and a labor force of about 175,000. In surveying the residents, the study concluded that over 65,000 people were determined to be under-employed, the majority of which had manufacturing skills; furthermore, the study concluded that over 40,000 individuals commuted out of the labor-shed daily, typically to the Chicago MSA, for manufacturing, technical and executive office jobs.

 

Availability

  • Within a 2 hour commute, one can reach approximately 13 million people
  • Within a 30-40 minute commute (the Rockford labor shed), one can reach a total population of approximately 807,300 people
  • The labor force is determined to be approximately 434,800 people
  • The labor shed contains approximately 16,800 unemployed people who are actively seeking work
  • Approximately 42,600 in the area can be classified as “underemployed”
  • In addition, 2,500 persons are not working but would consider re-entering the workforce.
  • In total, approximately 65,500 people are available for employers
  • Approximately 42,600 people commute our of Winnebago and Boone county to work
  • When surveyed, 73% of the commuting individuals said they would consider taking a job in Boone or Winnebago County if one comparable to their current job became available, 47% indicated that they would be willing to take a job in Boone/Winnebago County that was available, but not comparable to their current job.

Quick Links