Illinois Is Facing At Least 1,900 Layoffs This Winter

By Kate Shepherd in News on Dec 10, 2015 4:44PM

generalmills.com

The job market in Illinois just got worse. Nearly 1,900 upcoming layoffs have been reported to the state and Orbitz Worldwide and General Mills are two of the major companies with mass layoffs.

General Mills is set to lay off 444 workers beginning in January before it closes its longtime West Chicago plant in the summer, according to the Tribune. The plant manufactures Bugles snacks, Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Hamburger Helper.

Chicago-based travel company Orbitz Worldwide was acquired by Expedia in September and it was reported in November they are planning to cut 326 local jobs, almost 40 percent of the Chicago office. When the company filed a layoff notice with Illinois regulators, they did not disclose the number of job cuts in the filing.

If you fly frequently, you're probably familiar with Gate Gourmet, which is laying offing 821 employees in January. The catering company lost its catering contract with United Airlines at O'Hare International Airport. LSG Sky Chefs is going to take over the United business and many of Gate Gourmet's employees have found jobs with LSG, a Gate Gourmet spokeswoman told the Tribune.

Under Illinois law businesses with 75 or more employees must provide the state with 60 days notice of impending factory closures or mass layoffs.