Rauner To Visit Indiana, Wisconsin, Texas To Lure Jobs
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Gov. Bruce Rauner said he's going the offensive in an effort to increase the number of jobs in Illinois.
The governor was planning to visit neighboring states Indiana and Wisconsin, as well as Texas, in an effort to lure companies to Illinois; just as governors from those states have been trying to get Illinois companies to move to their states.
Rauner made his comments at Sawing & Shearing Services, Inc., a steel fabrication company on 135th and Western in Blue Island.
Anthony Sambo, son of the company's owner, said Sawing and Shearing is considering a move to Indiana, because of the worker's compensation costs in Illinois. Sambo said he'd provide bonuses or pay raises to his employees if the state made those changes.
The governor said Illinois should lower those costs, and get rid of other regulations, and companies will stay.
"I, as governor, plan to go over to Indiana and bring companies from Indiana here; from Wisconsin, here; and I'm going to go down to Texas and bring companies from there, up here," Rauner said.
Rauner said Illinois is already more desirable as a location for businesses, because it has hard-working people, it's in the heart of the Midwest, Chicago is the commercial center of America, and the state has better infrastructure than neighboring Indiana or Wisconsin.
However, he said Illinois has been bleeding jobs, and the state has to be more competitive.
