A Major Company eliminated 400 Jobs in Southern Illinois
Here is what we know so far about one of the largest brands in the country cutting 400 jobs and closing a massive center in Southern Illinois, is this another major blow for the Land of Lincoln?
According to NBC Chicago, Walgreens has officially cut 400 jobs and closed its distribution center in Edwardsville, Illinois. In the article from NBC Chicago, they say...
"Walgreens Boots Alliance said Wednesday it will lay off almost 400 employees at an e-commerce shipping center in Edwardsville, Illinois. The drugstore giant’s announcement comes six weeks after it rolled out plans to cut 504 corporate jobs in Chicago and Deerfield, or about 10% of its corporate workforce...Walgreens said last week it will close 150 stores in the United States, where it has about 8,900 retail outlets and clinics."
To read the complete article click here!
Talk about a devastating blow to a small but strong southern Illinois community. If you don't know Edwardsville is close to St. Louis and is home to about 27,000 people, and is one of the places that grew in population in Illinois between the 2010 and 2020 census, according to Wikipedia.
Anytime a small town loses a large distribution center it is brutal, but when you take a hit of 400 people losing their jobs in a town of less than 30,000 that will really hit the community hard. Hopefully, there is work available for the majority of the people laid off but it certainly wouldn't be shocking to see a lot of those families have to end up moving out of Edwardsville.
I understand that this isn't the state of Illinois' fault, and the state isn't telling Walgreens to do this, but it still just feels like another blow to a state that needs wins, not losses.