Layoffs Coming At 12 Chicago Companies

CHICAGO (CBS) - Grim news is in the pipeline for workers in Illinois.

Companies with 75 employees or more are required to notify the state in advance of major rounds of layoffs.

A dozen companies have told the State of Illinois they have, or plan to, lay off as many as 1,500 people by year's end.

Five of the 12 companies are based in Chicago.

Last month, the Illinois Department of Employment Security reported that unemployment in September fell in every metro area in the state for the first time since March 2007. In Chicago and the suburbs, the rate dropped one percentage point to 9.4 percent.

Figures for October have not yet been released.

At noon Friday, unemployed workers will rally to call for an emergency action for jobs. The rally will be held at the Thompson Center, 100 W. Randolph St.