Chicago has one of the Western world’s largest and most varied economies. More than four million people are employed in the city, and companies generate an annual gross regional product (GRP) of more than $609 billion. The city is recognized as an economic powerhouse and is home to more than 400 major corporate headquarters, including 36 in the Fortune 500. As the employment market gets tighter, jobs for veterans are becoming more available and hiring veterans is now recognized as the right thing to do.

About Chicago

Chicago is a vibrant city that was incorporated in 1837. Some 60 years later, the city successfully completed a massive engineering project to reverse the flow of the Chicago River so that it emptied into the Mississippi River instead of Lake Michigan. More than 52 million people visit the city each year to get a look at the place immortalized by Frank Sinatra in the song “My Kind of Town” in 1964. The City of Chicago covers an area of 60,000 hectares and is 578 feet above sea level. It’s located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan and is traversed by the Chicago and Calumet rivers.

Top Industries in Chicago

As the largest city in Illinois, the Midwestern U.S., and the third-largest city in the United States, Chicago is a buzzing center of the top 5 industries in Illinois. These include Service Industries, which contribute the highest dollar amount to the state’s economy according to Netstate.com. Leading providers include hotels, accountants, law firms, engineers, finance, insurance, and real estate companies.

Hot on the heels of services comes Manufacturing, with the building of machinery making up the largest percentage of this. The processed foods sector including baked goods and spices is a primary employment driver of manufacturing jobs for veterans. The state’s strong Export industry is the 6th largest in the United States, with 632,800 people employed in export jobs.

In the category of Agriculture, Illinois has more than 74,600 farms, 90% of which is used for crops such as corn, soybeans, wheat, oats, sorghum, fruits and vegetables. Specialty crops such as ginseng, buckwheat, mushrooms, and popcorn are grown on Illinois farms and support the agricultural industry. The state also has strong Mining activity, which includes coal, crushed stone, and gravel. 


Jobs for Veterans in Chicago

Some of the unique jobs advertised for veterans include positions like a Construction Inspector for Aviation with global organization CBRE Group. A Fortune 500 leader in real estate services, CBRE employs more than 70,000 people. The Chicago Transit Authority, too, regularly advertises specifically for military veterans. Chicago companies needing to fill positions often find the market for talented individuals to be highly competitive.

Hiring Veterans in Chicago

Companies looking to hire veterans in Chicago IL need to focus on making their organizations inclusive workspaces, and to promote their vacancies across the media channels veterans typically access. One place you can depend on to reach the veterans you want as candidates is our job board, which reaches thousands of qualified individuals every day.