Chicago’s recent enactment of its Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance (“Ordinance”) marks some of the country’s most progressive paid time off legislation and also imposes robust requirements upon Chicago employers. On November 9, 2023, Chicago’s City Council passed the Ordinance, effective December 31, 2023, touting it as a benefit to low-wage workers previously lacking vacation time.
Beginning on January 1, 2024, pursuant to House Bill 2068, Illinois employers located across thirty-eight (38) counties and townships will be required to provide employees with a “pre-tax commuter benefit.” This is one of a number of new Illinois laws impacting employers going into effect at the start of the new year.
Illinois is the latest in a growing trend among states and cities throughout the country to enact salary transparency laws. Illinois joins the ranks of California, Washington and Colorado, among others, requiring employers to disclose pay scale and benefits in job postings. On August 11, 2023, Governor J.B. Pritzker signed House Bill 3129 into law. Like its California, Washington and Colorado counterparts, the Illinois law is rooted in historic pay inequity among marginalized groups. The law amends Illinois’ Equal Pay Act and, beginning January 1, 2025, requires employers with 15 or more employees to disclose pay scales and benefits in job postings, as well as retain records of compliance with the amended law.
Continue Reading Illinois is the Latest State to Enact a Salary Transparency Law
Recently, Illinois became the third state to pass a mandatory paid time off law called the “Paid Leave for All Workers Act” (the “Act”), which grants employees a minimum of 40 hours of paid time off per year for any reason. Only Nevada and Maine provide similarly sweeping mandatory paid leave. Governor Pritzker has indicated he will sign the legislation. This new law, which would be effective January 1, 2024, will have a major impact on the landscape of paid leave in Illinois. It affects nearly everyone, its uses are unlimited, and it comes with new reporting and record-keeping requirements, as well as civil penalties for non-compliance. Though employers may provide more generous paid leave than the Act requires, the Act sets the new minimum standard for paid time off across the state.
Continue Reading Time to Update Your Policies: Illinois Passes Sweeping Paid Leave Legislation
In a victory for the plaintiffs’ bar, the Illinois Supreme Court has ruled that all claims under Illinois’s Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”), 740 ILCS 14/1, et seq., are subject to a five-year statute of limitations. For years, litigants and courts have grappled with whether BIPA claims must be brought within one, two, or five years of an alleged BIPA violation. The Court’s long-awaited decision in Tims v. Black Horse Carriers, Inc., 2023 IL 127801 (Ill. Feb. 2, 2023), puts an end to that pervasive uncertainty.
Continue Reading Illinois Supreme Court Rules All BIPA Claims Are Subject to Five-Year Time Limit
The New Year will usher in several new Illinois employment laws. These laws cover a myriad of topics and will require revisions to employee handbooks and general employment policies.
Continue Reading New Year Brings New Laws for Illinois Employers
For those larger Illinois employers who have not yet reported payroll and diversity data to the Illinois Department of Labor (the “IDOL”), now may be the time. The IDOL recently issued guidance to help employers navigate their reporting requirements (the “Guidance”).
On February 3, 2022, the Illinois Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in McDonald v. Symphony Bronzeville Park, LLC, 2022 IL 126511, ruling that statutory violations of the Illinois Biometric Privacy Act (“BIPA”) are not preempted by the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act (“IWCA”). The McDonald decision is a victory for BIPA plaintiffs and shuts the door on a defense that had been widely invoked by employers defending BIPA class actions.
Continue Reading Illinois Supreme Court Rules BIPA Claims Are Not Preempted by the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act
In a recent decision regarding an employee’s claims for violations of Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”), the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit asked the Illinois Supreme Court to provide much-needed clarification on the accrual of BIPA violations. See Cothron v. White Castle System, Inc., Case No. 20-3202, 2021 U.S. App. LEXIS 37593 (7th Cir. Dec. 20, 2021).
Continue Reading Seventh Circuit Certifies Hotly-Contested BIPA Accrual Issue to Illinois Supreme Court
Continuing the trend of recognizing Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”) as a muscular privacy-protective statute, the Illinois Appellate Court for the First District has ruled that the most common statutory violations of BIPA are subject to a five-year statute of limitations. BIPA imposes several duties on companies that collect, store or use biometric data—e.g., fingerprints, facial geometry scans—from Illinois residents. Prevailing plaintiffs may recover liquidated damages ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 for each BIPA violation (plus attorneys’ fees), and these provisions incentivize plaintiffs’ lawyers to bring BIPA claims as class actions.
Continue Reading Illinois Appellate Court Affirms 5-Year Statute of Limitations Period for Certain BIPA Claims