Public Act 102-1143
 
SB0208 EnrolledLRB102 04034 KTG 14050 b

    AN ACT concerning employment.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Paid
Leave for All Workers Act.
 
    Section 5. Findings; legislative intent; construction.
    (a) The General Assembly finds that it is in the public
policy interests of the State for all working Illinoisans to
have some paid leave from work to maintain their health and
well-being, care for their families, or use for any other
reason of their choosing.
    (b) It is the intent of the General Assembly by enacting
this Act:
        (1) To establish a minimum paid leave standard for all
    workers in Illinois.
        (2) To provide employment security and economic
    security for employees who need to use paid time off from
    work for any reason.
        (3) To safeguard the welfare, health, safety, and
    prosperity of the people of Illinois.
        (4) To ensure that an employee not be denied use of
    leave for noncompliance with leave notification policies
    if the employer has not provided a written copy of its
    notification policy to the employee.
    In order to effectuate this intent, the provisions of this
Act shall be liberally construed in favor of providing workers
with the greatest amount of paid time off from work and
employment security.
    (c) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to discourage
employers from adopting or retaining paid sick leave, paid
vacation, paid holidays, or any other paid time off or paid
leave policy more generous than policies that comply with the
requirements of this Act. Nothing in this Act shall be
construed to discourage or prohibit an employer from allowing
the use of paid leave at an earlier date than this Act
requires.
    Unless otherwise provided in a collective bargaining
agreement, nothing in this Act shall be construed to waive or
otherwise limit an employee's right to final compensation for
any type of leave promised to be paid under a contract of
employment or employment policy and earned by the employee
pursuant to the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act.
 
    Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
    "Construction industry" means any constructing, altering,
reconstructing, repairing, rehabilitating, refinishing,
refurbishing, remodeling, remediating, renovating, custom
fabricating, maintenance, landscaping, improving, wrecking,
painting, decorating, demolishing, or adding to or subtracting
from any building, structure, highway, roadway, street,
bridge, alley, sewer, ditch, sewage disposal plant,
waterworks, parking facility, railroad, excavation or other
structure, project, development, real property, or
improvement, or to do any part thereof, whether or not the
performance of the work herein described involves the addition
to or fabrication into, any structure, project, development,
real property, or improvement herein described of any material
or article of merchandise.
    "Construction industry" also includes moving construction
related materials on the job site or to or from the job site,
snow plowing, snow removal, and refuse collection.
    "Department" means the Illinois Department of Labor.
    "Domestic work" and "domestic worker" have the same
meanings as defined in Section 10 of the Domestic Workers'
Bill of Rights Act, except that "domestic worker" also
includes independent contractors, sole proprietors, and
partnerships.
    "Employee" has the same application and meaning as that
provided in Sections 1 and 2 of the Illinois Wage Payment and
Collection Act. "Employee" also includes all domestic workers,
and, for the purposes of this Act, domestic workers shall not
be excluded as employees under the provisions of item (1),
(2), or (3) of Section 2 of the Illinois Wage Payment and
Collection Act. "Employee" does not include:
        (1) an employee as defined in the federal Railroad
    Unemployment Insurance Act (45 U.S.C. 351 et seq.) or the
    Railway Labor Act;
        (2) a student enrolled in and regularly attending
    classes in a college or university that is also the
    student's employer, and who is employed on a temporary
    basis at less than full time at the college or university,
    but this exclusion applies only to work performed for that
    college or university; or
        (3) a short-term employee who is employed by an
    institution of higher education for less than 2
    consecutive calendar quarters during a calendar year and
    who does not have a reasonable expectation that they will
    be rehired by the same employer of the same service in a
    subsequent calendar year.
    "Employer" has the same application and meaning as that
provided in Sections 1 and 2 of the Illinois Wage Payment and
Collection Act, except that for purposes of this Act,
"employer" also means the State and units of local government,
any political subdivision of the State or units of local
government, or any State or local government agency.
    "Employer" does not include school districts organized
under the School Code or park districts organized under the
Park District Code.
    "Writing" or "written" means a printed or printable
communication in physical or electronic format, including a
communication that is transmitted through electronic mail,
text message, or a computer system or is otherwise sent or
stored electronically.
 
    Section 15. Provision of paid leave.
    (a) An employee who works in Illinois is entitled to earn
and use up to a minimum of 40 hours of paid leave during a
12-month period or a pro rata number of hours of paid leave
under the provisions of subsection (b). The paid leave may be
used by the employee for any purpose as long as the paid leave
is taken in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
    (b) Paid leave under this Act shall accrue at the rate of
one hour of paid leave for every 40 hours worked up to a
minimum of 40 hours of paid leave or such greater amount if the
employer provides more than 40 hours. Employees who are exempt
from the overtime requirements of the federal Fair Labor
Standards Act (29 U.S.C. 213(a)(1)) shall be deemed to work 40
hours in each workweek for purposes of paid leave accrual
unless their regular workweek is less than 40 hours, in which
case paid leave accrues based on that regular workweek.
Employees shall determine how much paid leave they need to
use, however employers may set a reasonable minimum increment
for the use of paid leave not to exceed 2 hours per day. If an
employee's scheduled workday is less than 2 hours day, the
employee's scheduled workday shall be used to determine the
amount of paid leave.
    (c) An employer may make available the minimum number of
hours of paid leave, subject to pro rata requirements provided
in subsection (b), to an employee on the first day of
employment or the first day of the 12-month period. Employers
that provide the minimum number of hours of paid leave to an
employee on the first day of employment or the first day of the
12-month period are not required to carryover paid leave from
12-month period to 12-month period and may require employees
to use all paid leave prior to the end of the benefit period or
forfeit the unused paid leave. However, under no circumstances
shall an employee be credited with paid leave that is less than
what the employee would have accrued under subsections (a) and
(g) of this Section.
    (d) The 12-month period may be any consecutive 12-month
period designated by the employer in writing at the time of
hire. Changes to the 12-month period may be made by the
employer if notice is given to employees in writing prior to
the change and the change does not reduce the eligible accrual
rate and paid leave available to the employee. If the employer
changes the designated 12-month period, the employer shall
provide the employee with documentation of the balance of
hours worked, paid leave accrued and taken, and the remaining
paid leave balance.
    (e) Paid leave under this Act may be taken by an employee
for any reason of the employee's choosing. An employee is not
required to provide an employer a reason for the leave and may
not be required to provide documentation or certification as
proof or in support of the leave. An employee may choose
whether to use paid leave provided under this Act prior to
using any other leave provided by the employer or State law.
    (f) Employees shall be paid their hourly rate of pay for
paid leave. However, employees engaged in an occupation in
which gratuities or commissions have customarily and usually
constituted and have been recognized as part of the
remuneration for hire purposes shall be paid by their employer
at least the full minimum wage in the jurisdiction in which
they are employed when paid leave is taken. This wage shall be
treated as the employee's regular rate of pay for purposes of
this Act.
    (g) Paid leave under this Act shall begin to accrue at the
commencement of employment or on the effective date of this
Act, whichever is later. Employees shall be entitled to begin
using paid leave 90 days following commencement of their
employment or 90 days following the effective date of this
Act, whichever is later.
    (h) Paid leave under this Act shall be provided upon the
oral or written request of an employee in accordance with the
employer's reasonable paid leave policy notification
requirements which may include the following:
        (1) If use of paid leave under this Act is
    foreseeable, the employer may require the employee to
    provide 7 calendar days' notice before the date the leave
    is to begin.
        (2) If paid leave under this Act is not foreseeable,
    the employee shall provide such notice as soon as is
    practicable after the employee is aware of the necessity
    of the leave. An employer that requires notice of paid
    leave under this Act when the leave is not foreseeable
    shall provide a written policy that contains procedures
    for the employee to provide notice.
        (3) Employers shall provide employees with written
    notice of the paid leave policy notification requirements
    in this Section in the manner provided in Section 20 for
    notice and posting and within 5 calendar days of any
    change to the employer's reasonable paid leave policy
    notification requirements.
        (4) An employer may not require, as a condition of
    providing paid leave under this Act, that the employee
    search for or find a replacement worker to cover the hours
    during which the employee takes paid leave.
    (i) Except as provided in subsection (c), paid leave under
this Act shall carry over annually to the extent not used by
the employee, provided that nothing in this Act shall be
construed to require an employer to provide more than 40 hours
of paid leave for an employee in the 12-month period unless the
employer agrees to do so.
    (j) Nothing in this Section or any other Illinois law or
rule shall be construed as requiring financial or other
payment to an employee from an employer upon the employee's
termination, resignation, retirement, or other separation from
employment for paid leave accrued under this Act that has not
been used. Nothing in this Section or any other Illinois law or
rule shall be construed as requiring financial or other
reimbursements to an employee from an employer for unused paid
leave under this Act at the end of the benefit year or any
other time.
    (k) If an employee is transferred to a separate division,
entity, or location, but remains employed by the same
employer, the employee is entitled to all paid leave accrued
at the prior division, entity, or location and is entitled to
use all paid leave as provided in this Section. If there is a
separation from employment and the employee is rehired within
12 months of separation by the same employer, previously
accrued paid leave that had not been used by the employee shall
be reinstated. The employee shall be entitled to use accrued
paid leave at the commencement of employment following a
separation from employment of 12 months or less.
    (l) Paid leave under this Act shall not be charged or
otherwise credited to an employee's paid time off bank or
employee account unless the employer's policy permits such a
credit. If the paid leave under this Act is credited to an
employee's paid time off bank or employee vacation account
then any unused paid leave shall be paid to the employee upon
the employee's termination, resignation, retirement, or other
separation to the same extent as vacation time under existing
Illinois law or rule. Nothing in this Act shall be construed to
waive or otherwise limit an employee's right to final
compensation for promised and earned, but unpaid vacation time
or paid time off, as provided under the Illinois Wage Payment
and Collection Act and rules. Employers shall provide
employees with written notice of changes to the employer's
vacation time, paid time off, or other paid leave policies
that affect an employee's right to final compensation for such
leave.
    (m) During any period an employee takes leave under this
Act, the employer shall maintain coverage for the employee and
any family member under any group health plan for the duration
of such leave at no less than the level and conditions of
coverage that would have been provided if the employee had not
taken the leave. The employer shall notify the employee that
the employee is still responsible for paying the employee's
share of the cost of the health care coverage, if any.
    (n) Nothing in this Act shall be deemed to interfere with,
impede, or in any way diminish the right of employees to
bargain collectively with their employers through
representatives of their own choosing in order to establish
wages or other conditions of work in excess of the applicable
minimum standards established in this Act. The paid leave
requirements of this Act may be waived in a bona fide
collective bargaining agreement, but only if the waiver is set
forth explicitly in such agreement in clear and unambiguous
terms.
    Nothing in this Act shall be deemed to affect the validity
or change the terms of bona fide collective bargaining
agreements in effect on January 1, 2024. After that date,
requirements of this Act may be waived in a bona fide
collective bargaining agreement, but only if the waiver is set
forth explicitly in such agreement in clear and unambiguous
terms.
    In no event shall this Act apply to any employee working in
the construction industry who is covered by a bona fide
collective bargaining agreement, nor shall this Act apply to
any employee who is covered by a bona fide collective
bargaining agreement with an employer that provides services
nationally and internationally of delivery, pickup, and
transportation of parcels, documents, and freight.
    Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection, nothing
in this Act shall be deemed to affect the validity or change
the terms of a bona fide collective bargaining agreement
applying to an employee who is employed by a State agency that
is in effect on July 1, 2024. After that date, requirements of
this Act may be waived in a bona fide collective bargaining
agreement, but only if the waiver is set forth explicitly in
such agreement in clear and unambiguous terms. As used in this
subsection, "State agency" has the same meaning as set forth
in Section 4 of the Forms Notice Act.
    (o) An agreement by an employee to waive his or her rights
under this Act is void as against public policy.
    (p) The provisions of this Act shall not apply to any
employer that is covered by a municipal or county ordinance
that is in effect on the effective date of this Act that
requires employers to give any form of paid leave to their
employees, including paid sick leave or paid leave.
Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection, any
employer that is not required to provide paid leave to its
employees, including paid sick leave or paid leave, under a
municipal or county ordinance that is in effect on the
effective date of this Act shall be subject to the provisions
of this Act if the employer would be required to provide paid
leave under this Act to its employees.
    Any local ordinance that provides paid leave, including
paid sick leave or paid leave, enacted or amended after the
effective date of this Act must comply with the requirements
of this Act or provide benefits, rights, and remedies that are
greater than or equal to the benefits, rights, and remedies
afforded under this Act.
    An employer in a municipality or county that enacts or
amends a local ordinance that provides paid leave, including
paid sick leave or paid leave, after the effective date of this
Act shall only comply with the local ordinance or ordinances
so long as the benefits, rights, and remedies are greater than
or equal to the benefits, rights, and remedies afforded under
this Act.
 
    Section 20. Related employer responsibilities.
    (a) An employer subject to this Act shall make and
preserve records documenting hours worked, paid leave accrued
and taken, and remaining paid leave balance for each employee
for a period of not less than 3 years and shall allow the
Department access to such records, at reasonable times during
business hours, to monitor compliance with the requirements of
this Act. In addition, the records shall be preserved for the
duration of any claim pending pursuant to Section 35. An
employer that provides paid leave on an accrual basis pursuant
to subsection (b) of Section 15 shall provide notice of the
amount of paid leave accrued or used by an employee upon
request by the employee in accordance with the employer's
reasonable paid leave policy notification provisions. An
employer that fails to comply with this subsection is in
violation of the Act and subject to the civil penalties
established in Section 35.
    (b) An employer who provides any type of paid leave policy
that satisfies the minimum amount of leave required by
subsection (a) of Section 15 is not required to modify the
policy if the policy offers an employee the option, at the
employee's discretion, to take paid leave for any reason.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed as requiring financial
or other reimbursements to an employee from an employer for
unused paid leave under this Act. Nothing in this Act shall be
construed to discourage an employer from adopting a paid leave
policy more generous than the requirements of this Act.
    (c) For domestic workers, if an employer requires evidence
of hours worked for other employers to confirm that the
domestic worker has worked or is scheduled to work 8 or more
hours in the aggregate for any relevant workweek, a signed
statement by the domestic worker stating that he or she has
performed or is scheduled to perform domestic work for 8 or
more hours in the aggregate for any relevant workweek shall
satisfy any documentation requirements of hours worked under
the Domestic Workers' Bill of Rights Act and this Act. Such
employer shall not require more than one signed statement in a
calendar quarter if the hours the domestic worker has
performed or is scheduled to perform domestic work have not
decreased to less than 8 hours in the aggregate in any relevant
workweek in that calendar quarter. An employer that requires
evidence of hours worked must give the domestic worker written
notice of such request and allow no fewer than 7 days or until
the next scheduled workday, whichever is greater, for the
domestic worker to comply with the request. The employer may
not deny paid leave pending submission of the signed
statement.
    (d) An employer shall post and keep posted in a
conspicuous place on the premises of the employer where
notices to employees are customarily posted, and include it in
a written document, or written employee manual or policy if
the employer has one, a notice, to be prepared by the
Department, summarizing the requirements of this Act and
information pertaining to the filing of a charge upon
commencement of an employee's employment or 90 days following
the effective date of this Act, whichever is later. If an
employer's workforce is comprised of a significant portion of
workers who are not literate in English, the employer shall
notify the Department and a notice in the appropriate language
shall be prepared by the Department. Employees may also
request that the Department provide a notice in languages
other than English, which the employer must post in accordance
with this subsection. An employer who violates this subsection
shall be fined a civil penalty of $500 for the first audit
violation and $1,000 for any subsequent audit violation.
    (e) No employer shall interfere with, deny, or change an
employee's work days or hours to avoid providing eligible paid
leave time to an employee.
 
    Section 25. Retaliation. It is unlawful for any employer
to threaten to take or to take any adverse action against an
employee because the employee (1) exercises rights or attempts
to exercise rights under this Act, (2) opposes practices which
the employee believes to be in violation of this Act, or (3)
supports the exercise of rights of another under this Act. It
is unlawful for any employer to consider the use of paid leave
by an employee as a negative factor in any employment action
that involves evaluating, promoting, disciplining, or counting
paid leave under a no-fault attendance policy. Such
retaliation shall subject an employer to civil penalties
pursuant to this Act.
    An employee who has been unlawfully retaliated against
shall also be entitled to recover through a claim filed with
the Department, all legal and equitable relief as may be
appropriate.
 
    Section 30. Department responsibilities.
    (a) The Department shall administer and enforce this Act.
The Department has the powers and the parties have the rights
provided in the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act for
contested cases.
    (b) An employee may file a complaint with the Department
alleging violations of the Act within 3 years after the
alleged violation. An employer that violates this Act is
liable to any affected employee for damages in the form of the
actual underpayment, compensatory damages, and a penalty of
not less than $500 and no more than $1,000. Employees shall
also be entitled to such equitable relief as may be
appropriate, in addition to reasonable attorney's fees;
reasonable expert witness fees, and other costs of the action,
which shall be paid by the employer to the employee.
    (c) The Department has the power to conduct investigations
in connection with the administration and enforcement of this
Act, including the power to conduct depositions and discovery
and to issue subpoenas. If the Department finds cause to
believe that this Act has been violated, the Department shall
notify the parties in writing, and the matter shall be
referred to an Administrative Law Judge to schedule a formal
hearing in accordance with hearing procedures established by
rule. Administrative decisions shall be reviewed under the
Administrative Review Law.
    (d) The Department is authorized to impose civil penalties
prescribed in Section 35 for any violation of this Act.
    (e) The Department is authorized to collect and supervise
the payment of any damages awarded pursuant to Section 25 and
subsection (b) of this Section to an employee or employees
under this Act. Any sums recovered by the Department on behalf
of an employee or employees under this Act shall be paid to the
employee or employees affected. The Department is not
authorized to collect and supervise the payment of any awarded
attorney's fees. Those fees shall be subject to collection by
the attorney awarded such fees.
    (f) The Attorney General may bring an action to enforce
the collection of any awards made under this Act.
    (g) The Department shall adopt rules necessary to
administer and enforce this Act.
 
    Section 35. Penalties and enforcement. An employer that
violates this Act or any rule adopted under this Act shall be
subject to a civil penalty of $2,500 for each separate
offense. An offense means any violation of this Act with the
exception of a violation of the notice requirement in
subsection (c) of Section 20. Any penalties collected from an
employer under this Section or under subsection (d) of Section
20 for violations of this Act shall be deposited into the Paid
Leave for All Workers Fund, a special fund created in the State
treasury that is dedicated to enforcing this Act.
 
    Section 95. The State Finance Act is amended by adding
Section 5.990 as follows:
 
    (30 ILCS 105/5.990 new)
    Sec. 5.990. The Paid Leave for All Workers Fund.
 
    Section 97. Severability. The provisions of this Act are
severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January
1, 2024.