Cat CEO: Illinois Should Do More To Grow Business

CHICAGO (AP) — Caterpillar's CEO says Illinois should do more to grow business and jobs, including adopting a sustainable state budget. That's according to a Sunday column by Doug Oberhelman, the head of the Peoria-based equipment maker. It's published in the Chicago Tribune.

Caterpillar Inc. has decided it'll bypass Illinois for a new plant and some 1,400 jobs relocating from Japan. Gov. Pat Quinn has said he believes the decision was based on Illinois' lack of ocean access. Oberhelman says logistics was a factor. But he says Illinois hasn't done what's necessary to balance its budget, credit agencies have downgraded Illinois' bond rating and it's among the most expensive states for workers' compensation rates.

Oberhelman says Caterpillar hasn't opened a new factory in Illinois in decades even as it's opened factories elsewhere.  full story

Returning Veterans Find Job Search A Challenge

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — While Illinois veterans are faring better than most others nationwide in terms of finding work, they still face challenges.

The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics says the average unemployment rate last year for Illinois veterans who served after the 2001 terror attacks was 9.5 percent. The unemployment rate for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans nationwide was 12.1 percent.

Veterans say they're struggling to translate their experience into a civilian workplace and to keep military jargon off their resumes. They find themselves having to rely on informal networks for job tips. Illinois says it has made vets a priority, creating programs aimed at linking younger veterans with employers, and it offers a veterans grant that guarantees free tuition at public universities.  full story

Illinois Offices Closed Monday For Lincoln's Birthday

CHICAGO (AP) — Illinois government offices will be closed Monday in observance of President Abraham Lincoln's birthday. Lincoln was born on Feb. 12, 1809. Government offices including Secretary of State facilities, courthouses and local libraries will be closed.

Lincoln's Birthday isn't a federal holiday and is only observed in a handful of states. The Abraham Lincoln Association will celebrate the 16th president's 203rd birthday with two days of presentations on the theme of Lincoln and the Civil War. The celebration will be Saturday and Sunday beginning with keynote speaker James Oakes on "The Emancipation Proclamation: Myths and Realities." Oakes is a slavery and Civil War scholar from the City University of New York Graduate Center. The dinner speaker on Sunday will be Illinois Democratic Sen. Richard Durbin. full story