Before the virus struck hard in mid-March, weekly claims typically amounted to roughly 225,000. They shot up to 6.9 million during one week in March before dropping, yet remain historically high more than eight months later.

The budget passed despite opposition from two main groups of aldermen: those who represent wards where a property tax hike of $93.9 million will hit hardest and aldermen who favored deep cuts to the police budget.

Restaurants and cafes could continue to serve customers outdoors through next spring under a proposal set to be introduced by Mayor Lori Lightfoot at Tuesday’s City Council meeting.

Ahead of Tuesday’s vote, Mayor Lori Lightfoot is urging aldermen to support the plan she crafted to close a $1.2 billion budget deficit in 2021. Four aldermen sound off the plan.

Delivery services such as Postmates, Grubhub, DoorDash and UberEats can charge fees totaling no more than 15% under a measure approved unanimously Monday by the Chicago City Council.

The Chicago Transit Authority’s Board of Directors approved the agency’s 2021 operating budget of $1.645 billion on Wednesday, but CTA staff warned of drastic service cuts without another infusion of cash from Congress.

Aldermen on Tuesday unanimously advanced a proposal backed by Mayor Lori Lightfoot to cap fees charged by delivery services such as Postmates, Grubhub and UberEats at 15% in an effort to help struggling restaurants.

Aldermen from across the political spectrum pressured Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s budget team on Tuesday to come up with a proposal to head off a $93.9 million property tax hike.

“Black Friday has been around for a long time, but what has been missing is the Blackness,” said the creators of the program, which encourages people to support Black-owned businesses in Chicago this holiday season.

It’s been a solid eight months since government leaders in Chicago and Illinois began asking residents to limit their activities due to the coronavirus. A new round of that took effect in the city on Monday.

Since February, nearly 2.2 million women have left the workforce, according to the National Women’s Law Center. What’s behind what some have dubbed the “she-cession” — and what are the long-term implications of the exodus?

A proposal from Mayor Lori Lightfoot would cap fees charged by delivery services such as Postmates, Grubhub and UberEats at 15%. Fees can now reach 30% of an order, officials said.

A trio of budget ordinances backed by progressive aldermen failed to advance Monday, as a fiscal watchdog warned that Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s plan to borrow $15 million to avoid layoffs and refinance an additional $1.7 billion was potentially perilous.

Starting a business during a pandemic sounds like a gamble, but it’s one that some intrepid entrepreneurs are willing to take. How they have adjusted their plans — and are moving forward.

We speak with Audra Wilson, the head of the Shriver Center on Poverty Law, on what the new Biden administration could mean for communities of color.

Chicago officials say they’re trying to help small businesses survive what appears will be — as President-elect Joe Biden put it — a very dark winter.