The Biden administration announced this week that it would mandate COVID-19 vaccinations (with exceptions for disabilities and sincerely held religious beliefs) for a staggering number of Americans. The latest mandate – covering federal workers, federal contractors, and healthcare workers at hospitals and other health institutions that participate in Medicare and Medicaid social programs – is […]
Chicago and Illinois employers should be aware of three recent changes affecting mandated sick leave benefits for employees. In April, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law an amendment to the Employee Sick Leave Act. The amendment, which took effect immediately, expanded coverage for employees. Additionally, as of July, Chicago’s Paid Sick Leave Ordinance now includes […]
The CDC released new guidance last week in an effort to curb the spread of the Delta variant of COVID-19. With cases on the rise, predominantly from the Delta variant, the CDC now recommends that both unvaccinated and vaccinated individuals wear a mask when indoors in public areas where there is “substantial or high transmission” […]
Employers seeking to impose restrictive covenants upon employees will face substantial new hurdles beginning January 1, 2022. Previously, the Illinois Freedom to Work Act barred employers from requiring “low wage” workers earning $13.00 per hour or less to sign a covenant not to compete or covenant not to solicit agreement. The original Act was inspired […]
The Illinois Employee Sick Leave Act (ESLA) was recently amended to give workers more flexibility to care for their loved ones. ESLA was enacted in 2017 and allows employees to use at least a portion of their personal sick-leave benefits available to them under certain existing employer policies to care for covered family members who […]
Back in March 2020 we advised that — for employees working remotely — the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was deferring the physical presence requirement of the Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9). Ordinarily, the employer “must physically examine” the approved document(s) within three days of the employee’s first day of employment. Because of continued precautions […]
The Chicago City Council last week passed an ordinance providing more rights to employees who take time off from work to obtain the COVID-19 vaccine. Effective immediately, this ordinance allows Chicago employees and independent contractors to get vaccinated during their work hours, requires pay for hours taken to get vaccinated from employers that make vaccination […]
On Wednesday, President Biden detailed a plan that will allow small businesses to claim tax credits for giving paid time off to employees to get and recover from the COVID-19 vaccine. Employers with fewer than 500 employees are eligible for the tax credit, which will offset the cost of paid time off for each employee […]
Last month, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed SB 1480, which amended the Illinois Human Rights Act (read our article about the IHRA amendments here), the Illinois Equal Pay Act and the Business Corporation Act. Larger Employers Required to “Obtain Equal Pay Registration Certificate” by March 24, 2024 Private employers with more than 100 employees in […]
Earlier this week, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law SB1480, which amended the Illinois Human Rights Act (the Act) in a way that will significantly affect how employers deal with employee conviction records. What is Prohibited? Under the amended Act, which takes effect immediately, it is a “civil rights violation” for an employer to […]
Earlier this month, President Biden signed into law the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). ARPA extends by another six months, the reimbursement of paid leave offered by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) that was scheduled to expire on March 31, 2021. In addition, along with extending unemployment benefits under the CARES […]
On January 21, 2021, President Biden issued an “Executive Order on Protecting Worker Health and Safety.” The Order, issued on the first full day of the new Biden Administration, was one of many directly addressing COVID-19. The Order stated that the federal government must take “swift action to reduce the risk that workers may contact […]
Agency updates religious discrimination for first time in over a decade The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has updated the section of its Compliance Manual on religious discrimination in the workplace. The updated section on religious discrimination was published in January 2021 after a short review period and a 3-2 vote along party lines by […]
With the inauguration of Joseph R. Biden as the President of the United States yesterday, we expect to see a different focus, new guidance and new laws. Some of the major changes that may be delivered in the Biden administration include: Renewed Focus on Misclassifications Recently, few areas of employment law have been debated so […]
Last week, Congress passed a $900 billion Appropriations Act. In addition to providing much-needed funding for vaccine distribution, direct payments to the vast majority of Americans, and a renewal of the popular Paycheck Protection Program, the act contains a number of changes that affect businesses and their employees. Paid Sick Leave Credits Extended A covered […]
By David Michael, Emily Wessel Farr and Mark Brookstein Infectious disease experts have a saying: Vaccines don’t save lives, vaccinations do. As the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first COVID-19 vaccine, employers eager to get back to normal may want to mandate vaccinations. Yet, it has been reported that a sizable number of […]
Lodging establishments will need to provide training to certain employees on how to recognize the signs. As we wrote about in a previous HR Law Blog post, as of June 1, 2020, employees who have “recurring interactions with the public, including, but not limited to, an employee who works in a reception area, performs housekeeping […]
Federal civil rights law protects gay and transgender employees from discrimination, the U.S. Supreme Court declared June 15, 2020, in Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia. In a 6-3 decision, the court resolved the question of whether discrimination based on sexual orientation and/or gender identity is deemed to be discrimination based on sex, and therefore covered […]
UPDATE: In its latest update to its pandemic workplace guidance, the EEOC addresses questions employers will face as businesses reopen and employees return to work. In advance of employees’ return, employers are encouraged to provide information to all employees about who to contact in the event they wish to request an accommodation for a disability […]
Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued Executive Order 2020-39 on May 29, 2020 which states that businesses must follow the guidance first published by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) on May 24, 2020, regarding safety measures during Phase 3 of the Restore Illinois plan. Until this order was released, it was unclear whether […]
Last week, the Chicago City Council passed the COVID-19 Anti-Retaliation Ordinance, which aims to protect covered employees who remain at home if they have symptoms of COVID-19 or are following a stay-at-home or isolation order. Effective immediately, employers may not terminate, demote or take any other adverse action against a covered employee for obeying an […]
The IRS issued Notice 2020-29 on May 12, 2020, to assist with the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The notice provides flexibility for mid-year 2020 elections under a §125 cafeteria plan for employer-sponsored health coverage, health Flexible Spending Arrangements (FSA), and dependent care assistance programs (DCAP). It also provides flexibility to carryover unused benefits in an FSA […]
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has updated its FAQ page on the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), explaining how employers should calculate employee leave and addressing the confusion over what a “quarantine or isolation order” means for purposes of emergency paid sick leave. As we previously wrote, the DOL provides guidance via these […]
UPDATE: A challenge to the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission’s emergency amendment, described below, has resulted in a temporary hold on the rule. On April 22, 2020, the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association (IMA) and the Illinois Retail Merchants Association (IRMA) filed a complaint in Sangamon County against the IWCC and its Commissioner, Michael J. Brennan, seeking an […]
Current guidance from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) provides that employers may lawfully take an employee’s temperature upon entering the workplace during the COVID-19 pandemic. In taking this step, however, employers must consider that the time an employee spends waiting to and actually having their temperature taken may need to be paid out. While […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently released an alert advising employers on safety tips to help protect manufacturing workers from exposure to COVID-19. OSHA advises employers to implement the following: Practice sensible social distancing and maintain six feet between coworkers where possible; Establish flexible working hours, including staggering shifts, if possible; Train workers […]
The Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) has announced its implementation of expanded unemployment benefits under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, including: An additional $600 per week for individuals receiving benefits from March 29, 2020 through the week ending July 25, 2020. Up to 13 additional weeks of federally funded unemployment […]
A significant component of the sweeping $2 trillion economic stimulus enacted on March 27, 2020, is a $500 billion Exchange Stabilization Fund, whose intended beneficiaries include mid-sized businesses with less than 10,000 employees that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) Act authorizes the U.S. Treasury Department and […]
The CDC this week issued updated COVID-19 guidance for employers, supplementing its “Interim Guidance for Businesses and Employers to Plan and Respond to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)” by adding to its cleaning and disinfecting guidelines, social distancing best practices, and strategies and recommendations to respond to the virus. As we previously wrote about, there are […]
As part of the recently enacted $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), Congress included expanded unemployment benefits in partnership with state unemployment agencies. The CARES Act creates a pandemic unemployment assistance program through Dec. 31, 2020, and retroactively to Jan. 27, 2020. The CARES Act will provide payment to those […]
As employers nationwide have turned to teleworking to help “flatten the curve,” the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on March 20 that it will defer the physical presence requirement of the Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) under Section 274A of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Ordinarily, the employer “must physically examine” the approved […]
The Illinois Department of Employment Services adopted emergency rules for the COVID-19 crisis. The rules include: Qualification for benefits for those who are temporarily laid off An individual temporarily laid off can qualify for benefits as long as they were able and available for and actively seeking work. The individual would not have to register […]
In a 90-8 vote, the Senate yesterday passed a new version of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (Response Act) that was signed into law by the President. By way of background, the U.S. House of Representatives over the weekend passed its first version of the Relief Bill in response to the spread of the […]
UPDATE: The bill continues to go through amendments and we expect more changes in the coming day. Check here for latest update. This past weekend, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the “Families First Coronavirus Response Act” (Response Bill) to help address the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) and help mitigate its economic effects. While the […]
In our blog post back in February, we urged employers to develop and implement a plan to address the impact of a pandemic in the workplace. Since last month, COVID-19 (Coronavirus) has spread across 100 countries with over 120,000 total cases. In the United States, more than 1,000 cases have been reported – a statistic […]
Employment laws are often grouped based on numbers – number of employees, to be exact. Sometimes, however, you can group laws by industry. This year, a number of new laws will affect Illinois hotels. Lodging Services Human Trafficking Recognition Training Act Illinois lodging establishments will need to provide training to certain employees on how […]
The I-9 Form, used to verify employment eligibility, was updated January 31, 2020, by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Employers should begin using this updated form for new hires as soon as possible but have until April 30, 2020, to transition completely. If employers do not make the transition by this date, they could face […]
3 … 2 … 1 … Happy New Year! It’s nearly 2020, and you may have read our previous blog posts about what that means for employers in Chicago, Illinois and the U.S. The Gould & Ratner Human Resources and Employment team is here to help as you transition your policies to be compliant in […]
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) yesterday announced its final rule on perks and benefits under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), defining what forms of payment are eligible for the time and one-half calculation when determining overtime rates. Under FLSA, covered, nonexempt workers must be paid overtime at no less than one and one-half […]
The Chicago Fair Workweek Ordinance, which seeks to bring predictability to employee scheduling, is effective as of July 1, 2020. Under the ordinance, covered employers will be required to provide 10 days’ notice of an employee’s schedule (increasing to 14 days on July 2, 2022). The Building Owners & Managers Association of Chicago (BOMA) filed […]
2020 is just weeks away, and Illinois’ new law allowing adults 21 and older to possess and purchase cannabis from licensed stores has the potential to substantially change employers’ current drug testing policies. Since Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law the Illinois Cannabis Act in June 2019, there has been much debate over the tension […]
Illinois Gov. J.B. Prtizker recently signed into law the Artificial Intelligence Video Interview Act that makes Illinois the first state to address the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in hiring. The new law, effective Jan. 1, 2020, will require employers to provide notice to and obtain consent from job applicants whose recorded video interviews are […]
Throughout 2019, Illinois has adopted a number of laws imposing new requirements and restrictions on employers, meaning that prudent Illinois employers should consider updating their employee handbooks to ensure compliance with new laws in effect now and as of Jan. 1, 2020. Following are brief recaps of the new laws: Salary History Ban On Sept. […]
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) yesterday issued its final rule on overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) increasing the salary thresholds for workers to be considered “exempt” and opening the door to an estimated 1.3 million workers receiving overtime pay next year. For the past 15 years, employees generally could be […]
When signed into law last month, the new Illinois Workplace Transparency Act (WTA) included a variety of provisions creating substantial changes for employers and employees starting Jan. 1, 2020. We covered one of the provisions – mandatory annual sexual harassment prevention training – in our blog post here. The WTA also includes new restrictions on […]
A new amendment to the Illinois Equal Pay Act seeks to ensure gender pay equity. As discussed in our recent posting, “New Illinois Law Bans Employers From Asking About Salary History,” starting Sept. 29, 2019, employers will be prohibited from asking job applicants (and their former employers) about wage, salary or benefits history. The following […]
The I-9 Form, used to verify employment eligibility, is set to expire August 31, 2019. Although the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is working to update the form, there will likely be a gap between the expiration of the old form and the implementation of the new one. USCIS has not filed an updated […]
A new law in Illinois seeks to advance the fight for pay equity. Governor J.B. Pritzker signed legislation on July 31, 2019, banning Illinois companies from asking job applicants or their previous employers about salary history during the hiring process. The No Salary History law, designed to help close the wage gap between men and […]
As we welcome 2019, the following is a recap of new laws affecting Illinois employers. Illinois Human Rights Act The Illinois Human Rights Act (IHRA) now requires all Illinois employers to advise employees of their right to be free from harassment, discrimination, and retaliation in the workplace. Employers must post a notice provided by the […]
On August 21, 2018 the State of Illinois amended the Nursing Mothers in the Workplace Act to prohibit an employer from reducing an employee’s compensation for breaks for nursing mothers. Originally, employers were required to provide “reasonable unpaid break time each day” to express milk, which “must, if possible, run concurrently with any break time […]
In a groundbreaking decision, the federal appellate court in Chicago has held that employers are not required under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to provide an employee with a long-term medical leave of absence after the employee has exhausted all of his or her leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Severson […]
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has announced an immediate stay and review of an Obama-era policy requiring pay information to be included on form EEO-1. The revised form was set to take effect with the next filing cycle in March 2018. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has always required companies to report […]
Remember last November when a federal judge put a temporary hold on significant changes to federal labor laws affecting millions of workers and their employers? We wrote about it here. Last week, the judge issued a final ruling that struck down the proposed changes, which would have required employers either to substantially increase the pay […]
On July 1, 2017, two new local ordinances requiring employers in Cook County or Chicago to provide paid sick leave take effect: the Chicago Paid Sick Leave Ordinance and the Cook County Earned Sick Leave Ordinance. These ordinances require virtually all private employers to provide for the accrual and use of up to 40 hours of […]
The Illinois House of Representatives has passed House Bill 2462, which aims to prevent pay discrimination against women in Illinois. The bill amends the existing Equal Pay Act of 2003, which prohibits employers from paying wages to another employee of the opposite sex for the same or substantially similar work, where the job requires substantially […]
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (in Chicago) ruled on April 4, 2017, that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 – which prohibits workplace discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin – includes discrimination based upon an employee’s sexual orientation. While the federal agency that enforces […]
Effective Sunday, January 22, 2017, all employers must have completely converted to using the new version of the Form I-9 to verify new employee identification and U.S. employment authorization (for both citizens and non-citizens). Employers are not required to re-verify existing employees on the new Form I-9, except when an employee’s authorization documents have expired. It is imperative that all employers use this new […]
For many, January 1 signifies a time for making New Year’s resolutions, setting goals and resetting benchmarks. This year, one thing is certain: when we enter the New Year, several new or amended employment laws will take effect for Illinois employers – and inevitably affect many individuals as well. The 2017 changes starting either January 1 […]
On Tuesday, November 22, 2016, a Texas federal court temporarily blocked the U.S. Department of Labor’s new overtime rule nationwide, scheduled to take effect next week on Thursday, December 1. The new overtime rule (called the Final Rule) would make about 4.2 million workers across the country newly eligible for overtime. The Final Rule increases […]
As of Wednesday, companies are no longer subject to the Department of Labor’s “Persuader Rule” requiring disclosure of legal advice a company receives in response to union organization campaigns. A court in Texas has permanently blocked the new Persuader Rule. Earlier this year, the Department of Labor issued the new Persuader Rule requiring public disclosure […]
The Department of Labor just announced its updates to the overtime exemptions effective December 1, 2016. These updates (“Final Rule”) greatly impact many businesses, resulting in more than 4 million workers who are currently overtime-exempt eligible for overtime pay. Federal labor law requires that all employees receive at least a minimum wage and that most […]
On May 11, 2016, President Obama signed into law the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (“DTSA”). The DTSA provides companies with a direct federal cause of action to enforce their trade secret rights, which was not previously available. The new law received broad bipartisan support from the House and Senate. Prior to the DTSA, […]
On June 1, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court held that in order to prevail in a disparate-treatment claim, an applicant need show only that her need for accommodation was a motivating factor in the employer’s decision, not that the employer had actual knowledge of her need. In 2008, Samantha Elauf, a Muslim woman, applied for […]
In a split decision ruling on December 11, 2014, the National Labor Relations Board (“Board”) held that employees have the right to use their employers’ email systems for nonbusiness purposes, including soliciting, distributing and organizing employees. The Board’s decision is limited to: Employees who already have access to their employer’s email system in the course […]
In a significant change for employers facing a union representation election, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “Board”) has adopted its “final rule” amending representation case procedures. These procedures resolve certain existing representation disputes and provide detailed guidance on the NLRB’s representation procedures, from the petition being filed to post-election issues. Under the previous […]
On July 14, 2014, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued new enforcement guidance on pregnancy discrimination, the first comprehensive update on the subject since the 1983 publication of a chapter on the subject in the Compliance Manual. The new guidance sets out the fundamental Pregnancy Discrimination Act (“PDA”) protections: that employers are prohibited […]
On July 21, 2014, President Obama signed Executive Order (“EO”) 13672, designed to prohibit federal contractors from discriminating against employees based upon sexual orientation and gender identity and broadly prohibiting discrimination based on gender identity across all federal employment. EO 13672 amends two prior executive orders: EO 11246, issued by President Lyndon Johnson to prohibit […]
On July 31, 2014, President Obama signed the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order (“EO”), which requires prospective federal contractors to disclose labor law violations and provides additional guidance to government agencies on how to consider labor violations when awarding contracts. The EO also encourages employers to settle existing disputes, ensures that workers are […]
Illinois joins the growing list of states which have enacted legislation banning employers from asking about criminal convictions on an employment application. The new law, signed on July 21, 2014, applies to private-sector employers that have 15 or more employees in the current or preceding calendar year. It becomes effective on January 1, 2015. The […]
As of April 1, 2014, employers with five or more employees who are hired to work more than 80 hours a calendar year in New York City must provide paid sick leave under the new Earned Sick Time Act (“the Act”). Under the Act, the employer has to provide 40 hours of paid sick leave […]
On April 8, 2014, President Obama issued an executive order (New EO) amending Executive Order 11246 (EO 11246) to prohibit discrimination or retaliation against employees of Federal government contractors for discussing compensation along with a Memorandum to the Secretary of Labor (the Memo) directing the Secretary of Labor (the Secretary) to propose a rule directing […]
Along with the New Year come a number of changes to Illinois law that are certain to impact employers. The following changes took effect January 1, 2014: Social Media. The Right to Privacy in the Workplace Act, which was amended effective January 1, 2013 to prohibit employers from requiring employees to disclose usernames and passwords […]
