Illinois Legalizes Civil Unions

February 16th, 2011 Posted by Jolie

Employers in Illinois will have to provide many to same-sex under the new state that legalizes civil unions. The allows any two people to enter into a that is legally recognized by the state as entailing the same responsibilities, and protections as marriage. An civil union can be between a man and a woman, or between two people of the same sex.

 

The Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act was signed into law by Governor Pat Quinn on January 31, 2011.

 

In practical terms, employers will need to provide many benefits to straight, gay or lesbian partners in a civil union beginning on June 1, 2011, when the goes into effect. On that date, employers must provide the same benefits to the partner of an employee in a civil union, as the provides to spouses of married employees. In particular, an who provides group coverage from an outside company, must provide the same coverage at the same price for employees in a civil union, as for married employees.

 

There are two notable exceptions to coverage under the law, according to attorney Theresa Essig with Fischer & Phillips law firm. First, an employer who is self-insured need not provide coverage to civil union partners, even if they provide coverage to spouses. Second, the law specifically allows religious organizations to make their own decisions about which dependents to cover.

 

Any other benefits provided to employees under state law, such as paid vacations and sick leave, will have to treat married spouses and partners in civil unions the same.

 

Ms. Essig adds that final regulations have not yet been written, so there may be changes in these policies. Her assessment is based on the impact of similar legislation in other states. Currently gay and lesbian couples are allowed to marry (more…)

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Illinois Limits Credit Checks by Employers

December 15th, 2010 Posted by Jolie

Beginning on January 1, 2011, Illinois employers will be limited in performing credit checks on employees and applicants. On that date, the Employee Privacy Act goes into effect. Hawaii and Oregon also have laws that limit the use of credit reports in background checks, while other states are considering them.

 

The new credit check law prohibits employers from ordering a credit report on an or employee, and from asking about credit history, although the includes a number of loopholes that will apply to many exempt management employees.

 

Employees or applicants can sue an who violates the law, and may be awarded damages, relief, court costs and attorney’s fees.

 

An employer can still perform credit checks on an applicant or a current employee if the business can establish that good credit is a bona fide job qualification. In order to do so, the individual must involve one or more of the following:  (more…)

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Illinois Minimum Wage Increases to $8.25

June 9th, 2010 Posted by Cara

On , 2010 the Illinois minimum wage will by 25 cents, from $8.00 to $8.25 per hour. The applies to employers with 4 or more workers, excluding family members. The federal of $7.25 per hour applies to employers with 3 or fewer workers. By law, any employee covered by both the federal and minimum wage laws must be paid the higher .

 

Every Illinois is required to display updated state labor law posters. The easy and economical way to receive free updates is to subscribe to a compliance protection plan.

 

Several exceptions to the law permit an Illinois employer to pay some workers less than the state minimum wage, usually an “ rate” that is 50 cents per hour less. Youths under the age of 18 can be paid just $7.75 beginning July 1, 2010. Employees over the age of 18 can be paid $7.75 during the first 90 days of employment, as a “ wage.”

 

The new minimum wage for employees is $4.95 per hour, an increase of 15 cents from the previous rate of $4.80 per hour. If the employee does not average $8.25 per hour in tips and wages over the payroll week, the employer must pay the difference. A employee under the age of 18, or in the first 90 days of employment, can be paid (more…)

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2010 Minimum Wage Recap

January 1st, 2010 Posted by Amelia

The good news for employers is that most state minimum wages are holding steady in 2010. In January 2009, more than a dozen states increased their minimum wages. In 2010, only a few changes are in effect.

 

The Kansas minimum wage increased from $2.65 to $7.25 on January 1, 2010. This is the first time in more than two decades that the minimum wage has increased. The change comes after more than a decade of efforts by Democrats. On December 31, 2009, had the lowest minimum wage of any state. Effective today, X states have lower minimum wages.

 

To be fair to Kansas, five states have no minimum wage whatsoever. They are Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Tennessee and South Carolina.

 

In an unprecedented step, the Colorado minimum wage actually decreased by 4 cents from $7.28 per hour to $7.24 per hour today. Most employees in the state are still covered by the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.

 

About a dozen states annually the minimum wage based on the cost of living. However, in most areas the cost of living has shown a of 1% to 2%. While many state statutes prevent the minimum wage from being reduced, they have not been increased.

 

States that have skipped the annual increase in minimum wage this year include , , , , , Montana, Missouri and .

 

In Florida, by statute the state minimum wage cannot be (more…)

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3 New Illinois Laws

October 9th, 2009 Posted by Amelia

Governor Pat Quinn recently signed three new employment bills into . The laws address wage discrimination at the state level, and the rights of victims of domestic abuse.

 

Expanded Leave Rights

Every Illinois needs to be aware of an amendment to the Illinois Victims Economic Security and Safety Act. The new law requires employers to extend unpaid, job-protected leave to victims of domestic violence or sexual violence.

 

Under the new law, effective August 24, 2009, employers with 50 or more workers must provide up to 12 weeks of -type leave to employees who are victims of rape, sexual assault or another type of sexual violence. The law requires employers with 15 to 49 employees to provide  8 weeks of unpaid leave.

 

Employers must also extend the same to victims of domestic violence of any kind.

 

This new law is notable because Illinois has no family leave law at the state level – so this is the state’s first intrusion into expanding FMLA to smaller employers. Currently, there is no Illinois law that requires an employer with 15 to 49 workers to provide leave for any reasons other than sexual violence or domestic violence.

 

New Illinois Discrimination Law

Under a new Illinois discrimination law, victims of stalkers, domestic violence and other crimes are protected from employment discrimination. The amendment to the Illinois Human Rights Act prohibits the employer from discriminating against an employee who is protected by an order of protection or a similar order issued in anther state.

 

Under the law, which goes into effect on January 1, 2010, the employer cannot make employment decisions based entirely or in part on whether a worker is shielded by an order of protection.  For example, the employer could not refuse to hire Jane, a teacher, simply because she has an order of protection against her ex-husband Ted. (more…)

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