Section Newsletters

Articles on Employment Law

Understanding the Illinois Freelance Worker Protection Act By Cathy A. Pilkington Law Office Management and Economics, Standing Committee on, March 2024 Illinois is the first state to enact a worker protection law for income earned by independent contractors. The Freelance Worker Protection Act addresses long-standing pay issues for gig workers and independent contractors.
Coming January 1, 2024: The Employer Juggling Act Featuring the Paid Leave for All Workers Act and Wage Payment and Collection Act By Kayla Davis Young Lawyers Division, December 2023 For years Illinois employers have juggled the requirements of the Wage Payment and Collection Act with internal policies. Now, the legislature and Governor Pritzker are adding a new element come the new year with the Paid Leave for All Workers Act.
Symptoms of the Great Resignation: Best Practices for Claims and Litigation With Key Trial Witnesses Who Are Former Employees By Bill Toliopoulos & Mark Noth Construction Law, August 2023 Construction stakeholders and their lawyers must overcome significant hurdles when their key witnesses are former employees. However, by understanding the applicable rules and maintaining well-crafted employee handbooks, employee agreements, and litigation consulting agreements, they can overcome these hurdles and put themselves in the best position to tell a winning story.
Illinois Passes Paid Leave Act By Rachel Bossard & Alex Marks Corporate Law Departments, February 2023 On January 10, 2023, the Illinois legislature passed the Paid Leave for All Workers Act, which will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024.
Can Offer Be Pulled if Job Candidate Won’t Follow Our Vaccine or Test Policy? By David S. Law Labor and Employment Law, July 2022 An overview of how to handle a job candidate who objects to sharing vaccination status when an employer's COVID-19 policy calls for vaccination or testing and masking.
Illinois Department of Labor Clarifies Amendments to Illinois Equal Pay Act By Alex Weinstein & Allison E. Czerniak Corporate Law Departments, May 2022 In March and June of 2021, the Illinois Equal Pay Act was substantively amended to require Illinois employers with 100 or more employees in Illinois to obtain an equal pay registration certificate from the Illinois Department of Labor every two years.
Amendment to the Illinois Freedom to Work Act Imposes Significant Restrictions on Non-Competition and Non-Solicitation Agreements By Sarah E. Finch & Nick Kahlon Bench and Bar, January 2022 On January 1, 2022, a new amendment to the Illinois Freedom to Work Act went into effect that significantly alters the restrictive covenant landscape in Illinois.
Illinois Employers Face New Health Coverage Reporting Requirement By Carrie E. Byrnes & Jorge M. Leon Labor and Employment Law, January 2022 Governor Pritzker signed the Consumer Coverage Disclosure Act into law earlier this year, which creates disclosure requirements for Illinois employers that provide group health insurance coverage to any employee(s) in Illinois.
Illinois Limits Conscience-Based Vaccine Objections, While Other States Allow Them By Jill Vorobiev & Amy Harwath Labor and Employment Law, January 2022 On November 8, 2021, Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law an amendment to the Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act, which will prevent employees from relying on the Act to avoid employer COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
COVID Considerations: Long COVID Now a Disability By Barbara E. Hoey & Sebastian Clarkin Labor and Employment Law, September 2021 On July 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division jointly published guidance on whether long COVID may qualify as a disability subject to the nondiscrimination requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act, and the Affordable Care Act.
Criminal Convictions No Longer an Automatic Disqualifier for Employment By Carl R. Draper Labor and Employment Law, September 2021 Public Act 101-656 made two significant changes to the Illinois Human Rights Act, including limiting the ability of employers to rely on conviction records in making employment decisions.
Illinois Governor Signs Restrictive Covenant Bill Into Law By Steven J. Pearlman, Edward Young, & Dakota D. Treece Labor and Employment Law, September 2021 On August 13, 2021, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law an amendment to the Illinois Freedom to Work Act, which imposes restrictions on the use of non-competition and non-solicitation restrictive covenants for Illinois employees.
U.S. Supreme Court’s Van Buren Decision Limits Employer’s Ability to Bring CFAA Claims Against Employees By Jiwon Juliana Yhee Labor and Employment Law, September 2021 In Van Buren v. United States, the U.S. Supreme Court resolved a long-standing circuit split regarding the reach of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
Employee’s Misconduct Disqualifies Her From Receiving Unemployment Benefits By Michael R. Lied Labor and Employment Law, April 2021 A summary and analysis of Ken’s Beverage, Inc. v. Michelle P. Wood.
Illinois Extends Employment Protections to Applicants and Employees With Prior Criminal Convictions By Michael D. Gifford Labor and Employment Law, April 2021 Recent Illinois Human Rights Act amendments create new protections for job applicants with prior criminal convictions.
‘Notorious Nine’ Mistakes by Employers in Dealing With the EEOC By Robin Shea Labor and Employment Law, April 2021 Nine mistakes that employers make when working with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Illinois Bill Limits Employers’ Use of Criminal Conviction Records, Mandates New Equal Pay Registration Certificate and Employee Composition Data Annual Report By Dan Canales & Jennifer Long Labor and Employment Law, March 2021 On January 13, 2021, the Illinois General Assembly passed Senate Bill 1480, which includes key amendments with new requirements for Illinois employers under the Illinois Human Rights Act, the Illinois Equal Pay Act of 2003, and the Illinois Business Corporation Act.
Court Will Not Aggregate Employees of Separate Companies to Reach Title VII Threshold By Michael R. Lied Labor and Employment Law, December 2020 InPrince v. Appleton Auto, LLC, the plaintiff's attempt to try to combine the employees of several related companies to reach or exceed the necessary number of employees for the company to be subject to specific employment laws was rejected.
Department of Labor Issues New Guidance on Whether Employees Must be Paid for Travel and Training By Scott Kiplinger & Chris Thrutchley Labor and Employment Law, December 2020 The Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor recently issued two opinion letters detailing how employers must calculate compensable hours worked under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
New Illinois and Chicago Employment Laws Effective July 1, 2020 By Sukrat A. Baber Labor and Employment Law, August 2020 A snapshot of new employment laws that went into effect in Illinois, some specific to Chicago, on July 1.
Conducting a Human Resources Audit: A Primer By Mark A. Spognardi Employee Benefits, June 2018 This primer should prove helpful to all employers that are committed to having solid and lawful employment and labor relations policies and practices.
Back-pay claim has 10-year statute of limitations By Phillip B. Lenzini Government Lawyers, March 2018 As a result of Prorok v. Winnebago County, back-pay claims from public employees could be brought as long as 10 years after the claim arises under the Wage Payment and Collection Act.
Recent Illinois appellate court ruling could end the recent flood of class action lawsuits against employers under Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act By Kwabena A. Appenteng & Philip L. Gordon Labor and Employment Law, February 2018 The Illinois Appellate Court’s decision in  Rosenbach v. Six Flags Entertainment Corp is momentous for employers because it provides a substantive defense that has the potential for defeating Biometric Information Privacy Act class actions whether filed in federal or state court.
The Second Circuit provides a roadmap for employers defending claims under Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act By Kwabena A. Appenteng & Philip L. Gordon Labor and Employment Law, February 2018 Employers that implemented biometric timeclocks without giving notice to, or obtaining consent from, employees as required by BIPA are not necessarily “dead in the water” when swept up in the current wave of class action filings.
Illinois employers must accommodate religious clothing and facial hair By Michael R. Lied Labor and Employment Law, January 2018 The Illinois Human Rights Act was recently amended to address clothing and facial hair issues connected with religion.
Non-disparagement clauses in the digital age By Cathy A. Pilkington Labor and Employment Law, January 2018 Because contractual non-disparagement clauses restrict free speech (and quite possibly competition), their ever-expanding usage has come under increasing legal attacks from governmental agencies charged with regulating the workforce.
PTSD is a disability under the ADA By Shari Rhode & Martin D. Parsons Labor and Employment Law, January 2018 Although PTSD is not exclusive to the military, the focus of this article is on veteran/employees with PTSD and some recommendations for how they can be accommodated in the workplace.
Wage obligations of H-1B visa sponsors By Michael R. Lied International and Immigration Law, January 2018 If an H-1B employee is in nonproductive status due to a decision by the employer, the employer is required to pay the employee’s salary. However, once there has been a bona fide termination of the employment relationship, the H-1B employee is no longer entitled to any further salary.
Conducting a human resources audit: A primer By Mark A. Spognardi Corporate Law Departments, October 2017 This primer should prove helpful to all employers that are committed to having solid and lawful employment and labor relations policies and practices.
Former employees must arbitrate ADEA claims on individual basis By Michael R. Lied Labor and Employment Law, October 2017 A summary of McLeod v. General Mills, Inc.

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