100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018
SB2333

 

Introduced 1/24/2018, by Sen. Michael Connelly - Tom Rooney - John F. Curran - Sue Rezin, Karen McConnaughay, et al.

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
820 ILCS 112/10
820 ILCS 112/28 new

    Amends the Equal Pay Act of 2003. Provides that it is unlawful for an employer to require an employee to sign a contract or waiver that would prohibit the employee from disclosing or discussing the employee's wage or salary; however, an employer may prohibit a human resources employee, a supervisor, or any other employee whose job responsibilities require or allow access to other employees' wage or salary information from disclosing such information without prior written consent from the employee whose information is sought or requested. Provides that it is unlawful for an employer to seek the wage or salary history of a prospective employee from the prospective employee or a current or former employer or to require that a prospective employee's prior wage or salary history meet certain criteria, with some exceptions. Provides that an employer against whom an action is brought alleging a violation of the Act's prohibition against gender-based wage differentials and who, within the previous 3 years and prior to the commencement of the action, has completed a self-evaluation of the employer's pay practices and can demonstrate that reasonable progress has been made towards eliminating wage differentials based on gender for the same or substantially similar work in accordance with that evaluation shall have an affirmative defense to liability. Provides that an employer who cannot demonstrate that the evaluation was reasonable in detail and scope shall not be entitled to an affirmative defense, but is liable for any civil fine of: (1) up to $500 per employee affected, if the employer has fewer than 4 employees; or (2) up to $2,500 per employee affected, if the employer has 4 or more employees.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

SB2333LRB100 17048 JLS 32199 b

1    AN ACT concerning employment.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Equal Pay Act of 2003 is amended by changing
5Section 10 and by adding Section 28 as follows:
 
6    (820 ILCS 112/10)
7    Sec. 10. Prohibited acts.
8    (a) No employer may discriminate between employees on the
9basis of sex by paying wages to an employee at a rate less than
10the rate at which the employer pays wages to another employee
11of the opposite sex for the same or substantially similar work
12on jobs the performance of which requires equal skill, effort,
13and responsibility, and which are performed under similar
14working conditions, except where the payment is made under:
15        (1) a seniority system;
16        (2) a merit system;
17        (3) a system that measures earnings by quantity or
18    quality of production; or
19        (4) a differential based on any other factor other
20    than: (i) sex or (ii) a factor that would constitute
21    unlawful discrimination under the Illinois Human Rights
22    Act.
23    An employer who is paying wages in violation of this Act

 

 

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1may not, to comply with this Act, reduce the wages of any other
2employee.
3    Nothing in this Act may be construed to require an employer
4to pay, to any employee at a workplace in a particular county,
5wages that are equal to the wages paid by that employer at a
6workplace in another county to employees in jobs the
7performance of which requires equal skill, effort, and
8responsibility, and which are performed under similar working
9conditions.
10    (b) It is unlawful for any employer to interfere with,
11restrain, or deny the exercise of or the attempt to exercise
12any right provided under this Act. It is unlawful for any
13employer to discharge or in any other manner discriminate
14against any individual for inquiring about, disclosing,
15comparing, or otherwise discussing the employee's wages or the
16wages of any other employee, or aiding or encouraging any
17person to exercise his or her rights under this Act. It is
18unlawful for an employer to require an employee to sign a
19contract or waiver that prohibits the employee from disclosing
20or discussing the employee's wage, salary, or other
21compensation. However, an employer may prohibit a human
22resources employee, a supervisor, or any other employee whose
23job responsibilities require or allow access to other
24employees' wage, salary, or other compensation information
25from disclosing such information without prior written consent
26from the employee whose information is sought or requested.

 

 

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1    (b-5) It is unlawful for an employer to seek the wage,
2salary, or other compensation history of a prospective employee
3from the prospective employee or a current or former employer
4or to require that a prospective employee's wage, salary, or
5other compensation history meet certain criteria. This
6subsection does not apply if:
7        (1) the prospective employee's wage, salary, or other
8    compensation history is a matter of public record;
9        (2) the prospective employee is a current employee of
10    the employer and is applying for a position with the same
11    employer; or
12        (3) a prospective employee has voluntarily disclosed
13    such information.
14    An employer may seek or confirm a prospective employee's
15wage, salary, or other compensation history after an offer of
16employment, with wage, salary, or other compensation, has been
17negotiated and made to the prospective employee.
18    (c) It is unlawful for any person to discharge or in any
19other manner discriminate against any individual because the
20individual:
21        (1) has filed any charge or has instituted or caused to
22    be instituted any proceeding under or related to this Act;
23        (2) has given, or is about to give, any information in
24    connection with any inquiry or proceeding relating to any
25    right provided under this Act; or
26        (3) has testified, or is about to testify, in any

 

 

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1    inquiry or proceeding relating to any right provided under
2    this Act; or .
3        (4) fails to comply with any wage history inquiry.
4(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
 
5    (820 ILCS 112/28 new)
6    Sec. 28. Self-evaluation.
7    (a) An employer against whom an action is brought alleging
8a violation of subsection (a) of Section 10 and who, within the
9previous 3 years and prior to the commencement of the action,
10has completed a self-evaluation of the employer's pay practices
11and can demonstrate that progress has been made towards
12eliminating wage differentials based upon gender for the same
13or substantially similar work on jobs the performance of which
14requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and which are
15performed under similar working conditions, in accordance with
16that evaluation, shall have an affirmative defense to liability
17under subsection (a) of Section 10. For purposes of this
18subsection, an employer's self-evaluation may be of the
19employer's own design so long as it is, in light of the size of
20the employer, reasonable in detail and scope.
21    A self-evaluation plan may include, but is not limited to,
22the following components:
23        (1) an evaluation of the employer's compensation
24    system for internal equity;
25        (2) an evaluation of the employer's compensation

 

 

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1    system for industry competitiveness;
2        (3) examination of the employers' compensation system
3    and comparison of job grades or scores;
4        (4) a review of data for personnel entering the
5    employer;
6        (5) an assessment of how raises are awarded; and
7        (6) an evaluation of employee training, development,
8    and promotion opportunities.
9    (b) An employer that has completed a self-evaluation within
10the previous 3 years and prior to the commencement of the
11action and can demonstrate that reasonable progress has been
12made towards eliminating wage differentials based on gender for
13the same or substantially similar work on jobs the performance
14of which requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility and
15which are performed under similar working conditions, but
16cannot demonstrate that any steps were taken to address any
17identified deficiencies, is not entitled to an affirmative
18defense under this Section and shall be liable for any civil
19fine for a violation of this Act as follows:
20        (1) up to $500 per employee affected, if the employer
21    has fewer than 4 employees; or
22        (2) up to $2,500 per employee affected, if the employer
23    has 4 or more employees.
24    (c) Evidence of a self-evaluation or remedial steps
25undertaken in accordance with this Section is not admissible in
26any proceeding as evidence of a violation of this Act.

 

 

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1    (d) An employer who has not completed a self-evaluation
2shall not be subject to any negative or adverse inference as a
3result of not having completed a self-evaluation.
4    (e) An employer who uses the affirmative defense under this
5Section is not precluded from using any other affirmative
6defense under this Act.