Illinois Employment And Labor Law Updates 2021

December

There were no employment and/or labor bills that were enacted that were identified.

November

There were no employment and/or labor bills that were enacted that were identified.

October

There were no employment and/or labor bills that were enacted that were identified.

September

There were no employment and/or labor bills that were enacted that were identified.

August

Human Rights Act

Bill

House Bill 121

Summary

Amends the Human Rights Act; provides that it is the public policy of the State to prevent discrimination based on the specific status or term of status that accompanies a legal work authorization; defines work authorization status as the status of being a person born outside of the United States, and not a U.S. citizen, who is authorized by the federal government to work in the United States; prevents discrimination based on the specific status or term of status that accompanies a legal work authorization.

Enacted

08/02/2021

Effective Date

08/02/2021

Topics

Discrimination; Legal_work_status; Work_authorization

School Code Sick Leave

Bill

House Bill 816

Summary

Amends the School Code; allows sick leave to be interpreted to mean birth, adoption, placement for adoption, and the acceptance of a child in need of foster care.

Enacted

08/06/2021

Effective Date

08/06/2021

Topics

Adopted; Child; Foster; Government; Bonding; Parental; K-12

Equal Pay Act

Bill

House Bill 1207

Summary

Amends the Equal Pay Act of 2003; relates to engaging in discussions with an applicant for employment about the applicant’s expectations with respect to wage or salary, benefits, and other compensation, including unvested equity or deferred compensation that the applicant would forfeit or have canceled by virtue of the applicant’s resignation from the applicant’s current employer.

Enacted

08/06/2021

Effective Date

01/01/2022

Topics

Salary_history; Wage_history

Prevailing Wage Act

Bill

Senate Bill 1767

Summary

Amends the Prevailing Wage Act; provides that the electronic database of certified payrolls must be searchable by the general public no later than January 1, 2022; requires personal identifying information to be redacted.

Enacted

08/06/2021

Effective Date

08/06/2021

Topics

Prevailing_wage

Medical Leave for School District and College Employees

Bill

House Bill 12

Summary

Relates to eligibility for leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act for school district employees. university employees, and community college employees who have been employed for a certain number of month and hours.

Enacted

08/10/2021

Effective Date

01/01/2022

Topics

Government; Family; Medical; Boards_of_Education; Higher_education; K-12

Freedom To Work Act Covenant Not To Compete

Bill

Senate Bill 672

Summary

Prohibits covenants not to compete and covenants not to solicit unless certain restrictions are met; relates to enforceability of a covenant; ensures employees are informed about their obligations; relates to furloughs or lays off due to COVID-19; relates to individuals covered by a collective bargaining agreement.

Enacted

08/13/2021

Effective Date

01/01/2022

Topics

Covenant_not_compete; Covenant_not_solicit; Non-compete; Non-solicitation; Attorney_general; Civil_penalty; Damages; Equitable_relief; Fines; Restitution

Human Rights Act

Bill

Senate Bill 1561

Summary

Amends the Human Rights Act; provides that it is a civil rights violation for a third-party loan modification service provider, because of unlawful discrimination, familial status, or an arrest record, to refuse to engage in loan modification services or to discriminate in making such services available, or alter the terms, conditions, or privileges of such services; makes changes concerning what constitutes retaliation under various Articles of the Act.

Enacted

08/13/2021

Effective Date

01/01/2022

Topics

Criminal_history; Discrimination; Retaliation

Government Severance Pay Act

Bill

Senate Bill 2240

Summary

Amends the Government Severance Pay Act; modifies the definition of severance pay to apply to a university president or chancellor who is transitioning to a new position within the university for which he or she is employed, but excluding interim presidents and interim chancellors; provides that a contract containing a severance pay provision must include, among other requirements, a requirement that if a provision to transition into a different position is included in a university.

Enacted

08/13/2021

Effective Date

08/13/2021

Topics

Higher_education; Severance

Human Rights Act

Bill

House Bill 1838

Summary

Amends the Human Rights Act; provides that discrimination based on disability includes unlawful discrimination against an individual because of the individual’s association with a person with a disability.

Enacted

08/20/2021

Effective Date

01/01/2022

Topics

Assoc_with_disabled; Discrimination

Public Safety Employee Benefits Act

Bill

House Bill 2568

Summary

Amends the Public Safety Employee Benefits Act; provides that a health insurance plan, as defined, is limited to the insurance plan options codified in the employee collective bargaining agreement or bargained upon with an authorized agent and subject to the grievance process.

Enacted

08/20/2021

Effective Date

01/01/2022

Topics

Government; Labor_law

Firefighter and Emergency Medical Workers’ Compensation

Bill

House Bill 3662

Summary

Amends the Workers’ Compensation Act; provides that, with respect to firefighters and emergency medical technicians, a contagious staph infection, including Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, is rebuttably presumed to arise out of and in the course of employment.

Enacted

08/20/2021

Effective Date

08/20/2021

Topics

Workers_comp

Public Labor Relations Act

Bill

House Bill 2521

Summary

Amends the Public Labor Relations Act; provides that the showing of interest in support of a petition filed for the purpose of selecting a labor organization as the representative of the employees in a bargaining unit may be evidenced by electronic communications, and such writing or communication may be evidenced by the electronic signature of the employees; provides that the showing of interest shall be valid only if signed within 12 months prior to the filing of the petition.

Enacted

08/27/2021

Effective Date

08/27/2021

Topics

Government; Labor_law

July

Wage Payment and Collection Act

Bill

Senate Bill 118

Summary

Amends the Wage Payment and Collection Act; provides that an employee is entitled to recover damages of a specified percent of the amount of any underpayments in wages for each month following the date of payment during which such underpayments remain unpaid.

Enacted

07/09/2021

Effective Date

07/09/2021

Topics

Administrative; Civil_action; Damages

Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Program Act

Bill

House Bill 3139

Summary

Amends the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Program Act; concerns regulation; provides penalties; provides administration to persons with disabilities in park district programs.

Enacted

07/09/2021

Effective Date

07/09/2021

Topics

Marijuana

Public Labor Relations Act

Bill

Senate Bill 525

Summary

Amends the Public Labor Relations Act; specifies further requirements for labor unit clarification; provides that no collective bargaining agreement entered into between an executive branch constitutional officer or any agency or department of an executive branch constitutional officer and a labor organization may extend more than 12 months after the date on which the terms of office of executive branch constitutional officers begin.

Enacted

07/23/2021

Effective Date

07/23/2021

Topics

Labor_law

Private Detective Agency Training

Bill

Senate Bill 548

Summary

Amends the Private Detective, Private Alarm, Private Security, Fingerprint Vendor, and Locksmith Act; specifies, in a provision requiring training for registered employees of a private detective agency within 30 days of their employment, that the training may be classroom-based or online Internet-based and removes certain topics that must be included in that training.

Enacted

07/23/2021

Effective Date

01/01/2022

Topics

Recordkeeping; Training; Private_investigator

June

Portable Audiovisual Rigging: Child Labor Law

Bill

Senate Bill 1847

Summary

Amends the Freedom of Information Act to remove an exemption from disclosure for certain information under the Equal Pay Act; amends the Equal Pay Act; requires employers with fewer than 100 employees to certify that they are exempt from specified provisions; provides that a business subject to the equal pay registration certificate requirement shall apply for and obtain an equal pay registration certificate during a certain time period.

Enacted

06/25/2021

Effective Date

06/25/2021

Topics

Fines; Certification; Compliance; Recordkeeping; Reporting_required; Large_employers; Small_employer; Equal_pay

Workers Compensation Commission

Bill

Senate Bill 1993

Summary

Amends the Department of Insurance Law of the Civil Administrative Code of by transferring all powers, duties, rights, responsibilities, personnel, books, records, papers, documents, property, contracts, causes of action, and pending business of the Insurance Compliance Division within the Workers’ Compensation Commission to the Department of Insurance.

Enacted

06/25/2021

Effective Date

07/01/2021

Topics

Workers_comp

May

There were no employment and/or labor bills that were enacted that were identified.

April

There were no employment and/or labor bills that were enacted that were identified.

March

There were no employment and/or labor bills that were enacted that were identified.

February

There were no employment and/or labor bills that were enacted that were identified.

January

There were no employment and/or labor bills that were enacted that were identified.