Francine Knowles

Francine Knowles is a freelance writer for the Daily Southtown.

Michalina Sokol, a Pathlights senior health insurance program counselor, works with a client on Medicare options. (Pathlights)

Column: Senior advisers share tips for Medicare open enrollment

November 10, 2025 at 4:15 p.m.

AgeOptions, the Area Agency on Aging for suburban Cook County, and Pathlights offer help navigating Medicare open enrollment

Senior recruiter Desiree Loebach, from Chicago, works at Flexera, Sept. 30, 2025, in Itasca. (John Konstantaras/for the Chicago Tribune)

Companies have found employees can be just as productive when working remotely. And they’re happier too.

November 7, 2025 at 5:00 a.m.

Employers are perfecting their flexible work arrangements. They’re making in-person time strategic and ensuring new employees don’t feel isolated.

Catherine McKnight, quality improvement manager, left, listens as project manager Jasmine Robinson talks about her work, Oct. 2, 2025, at engineering firm Sargent & Lundy’s office in Chicago’s Loop. (Dominic Di Palermo/Chicago Tribune)

Top Workplaces 2025: How Sargent & Lundy cultivates a collaborative and people-centered culture

November 7, 2025 at 5:00 a.m.

Sargent & Lundy is ranked No. 7 among large employers on the Chicago Tribune’s list of Top Workplaces.

Ken Padgett, from left, Jamie Nguyen, Dan Rubin-Wills and Lauren Grosskophf discuss the flavor of extra sharp cheddar cheese slices during an employee taste test at Lactalis Heritage Dairy in Chicago’s West Loop neighborhood, Sept. 25, 2025. (Talia Sprague/for the Chicago Tribune)

Top Workplaces 2025: Lactalis USA, maker of Kraft Natural Cheese, offers opportunities for advancement

November 7, 2025 at 5:00 a.m.

Lactalis USA is ranked No. 8 among midsize employers on the Chicago Tribune’s list of Top Workplaces.

Antonio Guzman loads totes onto the conveyor to move up to the stow area at the Amazon Fullfillment Center Oct. 18, 2023 in Matteson. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Column: Seasonal jobs already being filled, and fewer hires expected

October 27, 2025 at 2:08 p.m.

The seasonal ramp up that used to begin in November now takes place in September and October, said Indeed economist Cory Stahle.

Jacquelyn Banks, a mental health clinician at Blue Island Health Center, speaks during a June 20 news conference in Blue Island, saying she has seen patients hoarding their medications out of fear they could lose access to health coverage through Medicaid. (Olivia Stevens/Daily Southtown)

Column: Worries amp up as ACA enrollment nears amid political standoff over tax credits

October 13, 2025 at 3:49 p.m.

Affordable Care Act health insurance plan open enrollment nears as uncertainty abounds about government healthcare subsidies.

Danielle Leveston, standing, of Lansing, conducts a paint party recently through her business, Paintin & Poppin Traveling Paint Parties, at her studio at Union Street Gallery in Chicago Heights. (Danielle Leveston)

Column: Business is poppin’ for Lansing artist who brings paint parties to the people

September 15, 2025 at 3:19 p.m.

Danielle Leveston's Paintin & Poppin Traveling Paint Parties offers art fun at her Chicago Heights studio or in client homes.

Governors State University in University Park. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)

Column: Career counselors share how AI may replace jobs and provide opportunities

September 1, 2025 at 7:03 a.m.

Is your job or career choice artificial intelligence proof, and do you have the skills needed to be competitive in an emerging AI world? Those are among questions students, job...

Students visit various booths and recruiters during a recent career fair at Governors State University in University Park. (Governors State University)

Column: For job seekers, AI can be a helpful tool and a barrier, south suburban career counselors say

August 18, 2025 at 4:23 p.m.

Artificial intelligence brings competition for jobs and possibly exhibits racial bias, say south suburban career counselors.

In this Sept. 22, 2016 photo, volunteers hand out fresh produce to a woman inside a refrigerator truck at Oak Forest Health Center in Oak Forest. Officials from the Greater Chicago Food Depository and other area food pantries, anticipate need for services will rise after benefits programs such as SNAP were cut by the federal government. (AP Photo/Tae-Gyun Kim)

Column: South suburban food pantries expect influx of need after Trump’s SNAP cuts

August 4, 2025 at 3:38 p.m.

Operators of several south suburban food pantries have been serving more clients, and they expect the number go grow after cuts to SNAP.

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