Fall 2026 Chicago Job Fairs & Hiring Events: Your Complete Guide
All upcoming job fairs in Chicago
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Fall 2026 Chicago Job Fairs & Hiring Events: Your Complete Guide

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CHICAGO, IL — The fall hiring calendar here is smaller than it used to be but better aimed. The City Clerk's office brought more than 30 employers to Kennedy-King College on 63rd Street on September 30, with the CTA, UPS, Northwestern Medicine, BMO and the Chicago Police Department all in the room. State recruiters set up in Northbrook on October 2, and on October 8 a logistics and manufacturing fair at Oakton in Skokie and a construction and clean energy fair in Humboldt Park filled the same morning. October 15 brought a veterans job fair at Soldier Field and a Far South Side hiring day off 103rd Street. What is left of the season: Macy's and Bloomingdale's holiday hiring day at stores from State Street to Woodfield on October 22, a free downtown fair at the Palmer House on October 28 and a 50-employer fair at Daley College on the Southwest Side on November 4. And National Able Network is running free drop-in job-search workshops in Evanston and Chicago Heights through November.

Eleven dated hiring events between September 3 and November 4; eight have already taken place. Plus a free workshop series running into November. Every event that has published a cost is free for job seekers.

In a hurry? Skip straight to the job links and begin searching now →

📅 Table of Contents

Wind Creek Chicago Southland Career Fair — Thursday, September 3

10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. | American Job Center, Harvey

This event has passed.

Wind Creek Chicago Southland recruited through the Harvey American Job Center, including dealer positions with training provided. Casino work is one of the few paths in the south suburbs where a person with no industry background can get trained into a licensed, tipped role in a matter of weeks, so the Harvey American Job Center is still worth a call if that path interests you.

Veterans Forward Resource Fair — Thursday, September 17

9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. | National Able Network, American Job Center Pilsen, 1700 W. 18th St., 3rd Floor

This event has passed.

A veterans-only event: a panel and resource fair rather than a floor full of employer tables, built for veterans working through benefits, credential translation and a job search at the same time. National Able Network's Pilsen center remains the place to ask about the next one.

Fall Citywide Career Fair — Wednesday, September 30

10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. | Kennedy-King College, U-Building, 740 W. 63rd St.

This event has passed.

This was the big one. The Office of the City Clerk ran it alongside Chicago Public Library, City Colleges of Chicago and the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership, and the confirmed employer list ran past 30 organizations across genuinely different sectors: BMO Bank, Northwestern Medicine, Saint Anthony Hospital, the CTA, UPS, Cintas, First Student, Old Dominion Freight Line, the Chicago Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the Illinois Tollway, SYSTRA-EXP, Walsh Vinci, Donson Machine and the Calumet Area Industrial Commission, plus a stack of nonprofits and training providers.

If you missed it, the city's American Job Centers still offer free resume and interview help, and many of those employers post openings year-round. Kennedy-King sits in Englewood on 63rd, three blocks from the Green Line at Halsted. → See details

State of Illinois Job Fair — Friday, October 2

9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. | Hilton Chicago/Northbrook, 2855 Milwaukee Ave., Northbrook

This event has passed.

State recruiters took over a Northbrook hotel ballroom two days after the Citywide fair, listed on the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership's hiring-event calendar. State hiring runs through an online application all year, so if you missed the morning, build your profile on the state's careers portal and apply directly. → See details

TDL & Manufacturing Job Fair — Thursday, October 8

10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. | Oakton College, Room P-251, 7701 Lincoln Ave., Skokie

This event has passed.

Transportation, distribution, logistics and manufacturing, which is to say the sectors that are still hiring hardest in this metro while white-collar postings have gone quiet. If you have a CDL, forklift certification, machine operating experience or warehouse supervision on your resume, those employers keep posting between fairs, so keep searching. → See details

Association House Career & Resource Fair — Thursday, October 8

10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. | Humboldt Park Vocational Education Center (Wright College), 1645 N. California Ave., Room H315

This event has passed.

Association House of Chicago built this one around construction and clean energy: recruiters, training programs, apprenticeships and community organizations in one room, plus free resume reviews and mock interviews. If you have been weighing the trades, a pre-apprenticeship or solar work, Association House is still the place to ask about the next one. → See details

Chicago Veterans Job Fair at Soldier Field — Thursday, October 15

11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. | Soldier Field, 1st Floor United Club, 1410 Museum Campus Drive

This event has passed.

DAV and RecruitMilitary brought their national veterans job fair series to the lakefront, built to connect veterans and military spouses with employers committed to hiring them. The organizer showed 32 registered exhibitors the week before. RecruitMilitary runs these fairs city to city through the year, so its events page is the place to watch for the next Chicago date. Event page from RecruitMilitary. → See details

Fall Workforce Hiring Event — Thursday, October 15

10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. | The Powerhouse Chicago Church, 944 W. 103rd St.

This event has passed.

A Far South Side hiring day run by Metropolitan Family Services and listed on the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership calendar, open to anyone looking for work, trying to move up, or curious about local employers. If you missed it, the Partnership at (708) 580-8686 can point you to the next event near you. → See details

Macy's and Bloomingdale's Holiday Hiring Day — Thursday, October 22

Hours vary by store | Macy's State Street, Bloomingdale's on North Michigan Avenue, Old Orchard in Skokie and Macy's Woodfield

Seasonal store jobs, and this year Chicago is on Macy's list of markets with greater store hiring and on Bloomingdale's list too. Walk in and apply at Macy's on State Street in the Loop, at Bloomingdale's on North Michigan Avenue, at the Macy's and Bloomingdale's stores at Old Orchard in Skokie, or at Macy's Woodfield in Schaumburg. Macy's says times vary by location, so call your store first, and no Chicago headcount has been published. A final hiring day follows on Thursday, November 19. → See details

Chicago Job Fair at the Palmer House — Wednesday, October 28

11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. | Palmer House, a Hilton Hotel, 17 E. Monroe St.

The big downtown fair of the month. Best Hire Career Fairs runs it at the Palmer House in the Loop, and it is free for job seekers at any experience level, from recent graduates to career changers. The organizer lists finance, health care, technology, logistics, manufacturing, hospitality and customer service among the industries, with the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy and Chicago Police Department among the named employers. Register ahead on the organizer's site; walk-ins get in only if space allows. Dress professionally and bring plenty of resumes. → See details

Daley College Fall Career Fair — Wednesday, November 4

10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. | Richard J. Daley College, 7500 S. Pulaski Road

The American Job Center at Daley College expects more than 50 hiring employers on the Southwest Side, listed on the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership calendar. No employer names have been published yet, so bring resumes that work for more than one kind of job. The organizer asks you to reserve a spot through its online registration form, which also gets you prep material before the day. Daley sits on Pulaski Road in West Lawn, a couple of miles south of Midway. Event page from the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership. → See details

Free Workforce Wednesday Workshops — September through November

11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., drop in, free

Not job fairs, but the most consistently useful thing on this list if your resume has been out for a while with nothing coming back. National Able Network and the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership run free drop-in sessions at three sites:

  • Pilsen, 1700 W. 18th St. — September 16 (passed) and October 14 (passed)
  • Evanston Public Library, 1703 Orrington Ave., 3rd Floor — September 23 (passed), October 21 and November 18
  • Chicago Heights, Prairie State College, 202 S. Halsted St. — September 9 (passed) and November 18

🔎 How to Pick the Right Ones

Sort yourself quickly:

  • You want the most employers in one room: the Palmer House fair downtown on October 28 has the widest mix of industries still ahead, and Daley College expects more than 50 employers on November 4.
  • You want a holiday job: October 22 at Macy's on State Street, Bloomingdale's on North Michigan, Old Orchard or Woodfield.
  • Southwest Side, near Midway: Daley College on November 4.
  • Your applications are disappearing into the void: a Workforce Wednesday in Evanston or Chicago Heights. Fix the resume first, then work the fairs.

What to Bring to Any of Them

  • Printed resumes, more than you think you need
  • Photo ID, and a DD-214 if you are a veteran
  • CDL, forklift certification or any license number you already hold
  • A short self-introduction you have actually said out loud
  • Open availability you can state plainly, including nights and weekends
  • A notebook, so you can write down names and follow up within 48 hours

What It Means for Job Seekers

Chicago is the outlier in Illinois right now, and not in a good way. Metro unemployment ticked up to roughly 5.2 percent this summer while the statewide figure improved, which means the competition in this market is real and the good rooms fill fast. The composition of the hiring has shifted too. Transportation, distribution, logistics, healthcare and public-sector roles are where the volume is, which is exactly what the fall calendar reflects.

On pay, know the floor before you negotiate. The Illinois state minimum wage is $15.00 an hour, with a tipped minimum of $9.00. Chicago sets its own higher minimum wage inside city limits, and it steps up every July 1, so a suburban offer and a city offer are not governed by the same number. Real market rates run well above both: warehouse and logistics work in the metro typically posts $18 to $22 an hour, entry-level healthcare roles like CNA and patient care tech run $18 to $25, and food service outside of tipped positions clusters in the high teens to low twenties.

Start here:

Frequently Asked Questions

Are Chicago job fairs free?

The Palmer House fair and the workshops are free for job seekers, as the Citywide Career Fair, the Skokie fair and the Association House fair were. The Daley College fair has not published cost details, so confirm when you register. Macy's hiring day is an in-store application day with no registration.

Which fall job fair has the most employers?

The Fall Citywide Career Fair on September 30 at Kennedy-King College, now past, had more than 30 confirmed employers and agencies across banking, healthcare, transit, logistics, construction and government. Of the fairs still ahead, the Palmer House fair on October 28 covers the widest range of industries, and Daley College expects more than 50 employers on November 4.

Do I have to be a veteran or a student to attend?

The September 17 Veterans Forward event and the October 15 Soldier Field fair, both past, were built for veterans and military spouses. The Palmer House and Daley College fairs, Macy's hiring day and the Workforce Wednesday workshops are open to the general public.

What should I wear?

Business casual is the safe default. If you will be talking with government or public-safety recruiters, lean a little more formal than you think you need to.

Will more events be added this fall?

Very likely. The Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership and its American Job Centers add hiring events with only a few weeks of notice, and ward-level and single-employer fairs rarely appear more than a month out. We update this guide as new dates are confirmed.

Don't Rely on Showing Up

A job fair is one channel, not the whole search. Create a free LocalJobPage account and set alerts so new Chicago openings reach you between events, then browse the Career Center for role-by-role guidance.

Employers: a table at a fair reaches the people who walked in that day. Post your openings on LocalJobPage and reach Chicago job seekers every day of the season.

Related Reading

Bookmark this one. From State Street in the Loop to Pulaski Road on the Southwest Side, the good conversations go to the people who got there before noon.

Updated October 17, 2026: added Macy's and Bloomingdale's holiday hiring day on Oct. 22. Updated October 10, 2026: added the Chicago Veterans Job Fair at Soldier Field on Oct. 15 and the Daley College Fall Career Fair on Nov. 4. Updated October 2, 2026: added the Association House Career & Resource Fair in Humboldt Park on Oct. 8, the Fall Workforce Hiring Event at the Powerhouse on Oct. 15 and the Chicago Job Fair at the Palmer House on Oct. 28. Updated September 28, 2026: added the State of Illinois Job Fair in Northbrook on Oct. 2. The Oct. 8 Skokie fair now takes free RSVPs through the organizer.

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