Protecting Employers Since 1985
On January 10, 2023, the Illinois Legislature passed the Paid Leave for All Workers Act (the “Act”). This Act is awaiting Governor Pritzker’s signing, but he has clearly indicated strong support of the Act and his intent to sign the Act into law. This Act will not go into effect until January 1, 2024. There…
Read MoreToday, the Illinois Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision on whether the “exclusive remedy” provision of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act bars BIPA claims against Illinois employers. Unfortunately for employers, the Court ruled that workers’ compensation exclusivity does not bar BIPA claims against employers, thus leaving the floodgates open for further costly, and usually class action,…
Read MoreOn December 16, 2020, the EEOC issued the anticipated guidance for employers relating to the COVID-19 vaccine. There is nothing particularly surprising in the guidelines. The EEOC confirms that the laws that it administers do not, as a general matter, prohibit an employer from requiring employees to receive the COVID-19 vaccine or from requiring proof…
Read MoreEmployers are scrambling to find an equitable and lawful plan to manage reduced or eliminated revenue resulting from mandated closures, illnesses, and quarantines and to understand newly enacted laws. On March 18, 2020, President Trump signed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”). With respect to employment concerns, the FFRCA provides for expanded coverage under…
Read MoreThe EEOC has issued the following guidance regarding the difficult issues facing employers in their efforts to identify and control Covid-19. While the ADA still, of course, applies to employers’ conduct, limited exceptions have been made to allow employers to, for example, take employees’ temperatures to identify those who may have the virus. The guidelines…
Read MoreThis flu season is here along with a very unwelcome relative: the coronavirus (covid-19). While the impact of the coronavirus in the United States is still unknown, the workplace, (like schools), are places where disease has an opportunity to easily spread; it has been estimated that each infected person will infect 2-3 more people. Scientists…
Read MoreAs most of you will recall, in 2016, under the Obama administration, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) increased the salary level required for exemption under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) from $23,660 to $47,476. However, the Obama DOL rule was invalidated by federal courts (because the salary level was so high as to supplant…
Read More◊The Impact On Your Business Practices ◊ Governor Pritzker signed House Bill 834 last week which amends the Illinois Equal Pay Act to prohibit Illinois employers from seeking an applicant’s compensation history as a condition of employment. The Bill also prohibits an employer from requiring employees to sign agreements which would prevent them from disclosing…
Read MoreIllinois Supreme Court’s Decision on Biometric Information Privacy Act Opens Door to More Litigation
The Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”) is yet another Illinois law drafted with ambiguities which beg, unfortunately, for litigation. Where a statute is drafted with holes of ambiguity, (and this one has many), it is up to the judiciary to fill those voids, and that, of course, means costly litigation. One ambiguity was recently…
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