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We are seeing Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) audits starting to resume! When an Illinois company who uses independent contractors is audited by the IDES, the company often thinks they are “innocent until proven guilty” on the independent contractor issue. WRONG! WORKERS ARE PRESUMED TO BE EMPLOYEES: The legal requirement for a company using…
Read MoreBoth the State of Illinois and the City of Chicago have been very active in creating new Employment Law Employer Responsibilities in Calendar 2020: Model Training Program for Mandatory Sexual Harassment Prevention: The Illinois Department of Human Rights has released its Model Training Program for the prevention of Sexual Harassment. Under the Illinois Human Rights…
Read MoreHealthcare institutions are prohibited from discriminating against their employees and their PATIENTS under federal civil rights laws, the Affordable Care Act, the Rehabilitation Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Employers in the healthcare field should do the mandatory annual harassment training, as required by the Illinois Human Rights Act focused not only on employee,…
Read MoreFirst, I want to say that we are here to help. COVID-19 has created some real challenges and never before seen issues. Here is some background as well as a few observations. National Labor Relations Board As of now, all NLRB offices are closed to the public. The NLRB is operational but most employees are…
Read MoreToday, May 29, 2020 starts Phase 3 of Restore Illinois for the State of Illinois (excluding Chicago where Phase 3 is scheduled for June 3, 2020). On Tuesday, May 5, 2020, Governor Pritzker released Restore Illinois, a five-phased plan that will reopen Illinois after the stay-at-home order due to COVID-19. To prepare businesses and employers…
Read MoreUnfortunately, our country along with all countries, are dealing with the pandemic crisis. As the restrictions are gradually being lifted on the stay-at-home orders, businesses will resume operations with limitations. Employers will be recalling employees back to work. What should employers do to protect themselves against potential workers’ compensation claims and other liability issues? The…
Read MoreGovernor Walz issued Executive Order 20-56 authorizing some businesses to reopen provided that they comply with OSHA, MDH, and CDC guidelines. The Order went into effect on May 17, 2020, at 11:59 p.m. and remains in effect until May 31, 2020. Reopened non-critical business must establish and implement a COVID-19 Preparedness Plan that provides for…
Read MoreOn May 19, 2020, OSHA issued an Enforcement Guidance on recording cases of alleged Coronavirus illnesses in the workplace. Given the difficulty of establishing the causation of many alleged work-related illnesses, and these unprecedented times, this Guidance should prove helpful. According to OSHA, COVID-19 is a recordable illness if: The case is a confirmed case…
Read MoreThe independent contractor “legal world” is quickly transforming in many ways! It is hard to keep up with the flood of new laws and court cases impacting independent contractor status on both the Federal and State levels. FEDERAL COVID-19 LEGISLATION AFFECTING INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS: Recently Congress passed two major bills (signed into law by President Trump)…
Read MoreWe now know the basic outline of how the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) will process independent contractor unemployment insurance claims. The IDES issued a press release on May 5, 2020 about 1099 workers who have lost work due to COVID-19. The IDES press release states: “Workers who believe they may be eligible for…
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