Millions of jobless Americans lost their unemployment benefits on Monday, leaving only a handful of economic support programs for those who are still being hit financially by the year-and-a-half-old coronavirus pandemic.

Most shipping containers are packed with consumer goods, but the brightly painted shipping containers in Boxville at the corner of 51st Street and Calumet Avenue are packed full of small businesses with big ambitions.

The August job growth the government reported Friday fell far short of the sizable gains of roughly 1 million in each of the previous two months. The hiring jumps in June and July had followed widespread vaccinations that allowed the economy to fully reopen from pandemic restrictions. 

Des Plaines is a diverse suburb just north of O’Hare Airport. It has a high vaccination rate but is still facing an uptick in COVID-19 cases. It’s also looking forward to the reopening of a historic theater, and the expansion of one of its major employers.

Legislators have been working toward a measure that would keep two Illinois nuclear plants open. Despite a rash of talks during Tuesday’s special session, there is still no concrete path — and less than two weeks remain until Exelon says it will close the plants.

Imagine getting from Chicago to St. Louis by train in just a couple of hours. That’s the vision of high-speed rail advocates, who want to see an ultrafast train cut across Illinois — and the vision has gotten a boost from Illinois lawmakers.

Scoops Dessert Bar is the first restaurant in Chicago to open as part of the city’s Expedited Restaurant Licensing Pilot Program, which is designed to help fill restaurants shut down by the COVID-19 pandemic.

From mom-and-pop outfits to big-box stores, the coronavirus pandemic has significantly impacted businesses in Chicago and beyond. We talk with local Latino business owners and entrepreneurs about their experiences. Watch the full discussion.

The e-commerce giant recently began installing lockers inside Chicago parks, and says the lockers are a “secure and convenient” option. But that so-called convenience has proven controversial. 

It’s the last summer weekend to squeeze in a family vacation, but the delta variant of COVID-19 is discouraging Labor Day weekend travel. Crain’s Chicago Business editor Ann Dwyer takes us behind the headline of that story and more.

A business school dean gives us the last word on supporting Latino entrepreneurs — and how that can benefit all Americans.

The lawsuit accuses both DoorDash and Grubhub of advertising delivery services from restaurants without their consent, damaging the restaurants’ reputations and forcing them to scramble to resolve complaints.

On Chicago’s Southwest Side, Garfield Ridge is home to Midway Airport. It has a significant first responder population and many senior citizens. We talked with community leaders about the pandemic’s continuing health and economic impact — and one organization using wrestling to empower youth.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker may soon make the rare move of vetoing a bill that passed both houses of the Democratic-controlled General Assembly — unanimously. The bill has to do with how private ambulance companies are reimbursed when they transport Medicaid patients. 

A Humboldt Park woman is on a mission to break the stigma surrounding pit bulls — one colorful outfit at a time. How Erin Crowley’s line of dog apparel aims to help change people’s preconceived notions about the breed. 

This should have been the week when the long-awaited Chicago casino project finally got up and running. Monday was the initial deadline to submit proposals to develop the much vaunted project — but after few bidders appeared interested — the city pushed back the deadline to the end of October.