Deadlines for Chicago and Illinois Employers

Employers in Illinois and Chicago will soon be subject to the following new employment laws:

1. In addition to the July 1, 2022 requirement for a written policy on sexual harassment and a poster advising employees of the prohibition on sexual harassment, on or before July 1, 2023, Chicago employers must complete the following new Sexual Harassment and Prevention Training sessions for Chicago employees who work remotely or in-person within the City of Chicago:

• Non-managerial employees must participate in a minimum of one hour of sexual harassment prevention training annually;
• All employees must participate in one hour of bystander training annually, and
• Anyone who supervises or manages employees must participate in a minimum of two hours of sexual harassment prevention training annually.

Employers that fail to comply with the training requirements will be subject to fines of up to $1,000 for each offense per day that the violation continues.  In addition, an employer that fails to take reasonable corrective measures after becoming aware of sexual harassment can result in a fine of up to $10,000 per violation.

2. By March 23, 2024, under the amended Illinois Equal Pay Act (“the Act”), employers with at least 100 employees in Illinois must apply for an Equal Pay Registration Certificate (“EPRC”). After applying for the EPRC, the Illinois Department of Labor will contact the employer with a deadline to submit:

(1) a Certification Statement;

(2) a spreadsheet containing each Illinois employee’s:

1. first and last name;
2. last four digits of the SSN;
3. gender;
4. race;
5. ethnicity;
6. wages rounded to the nearest hundred dollars;
7. hours worked;
8. hire date;
9. termination date (if applicable);
10. job classification based on EEO-1 categories;
11. job title, and
12. the county in which the employee actually works or reports to.

Any violation the Act will be subject to a fine of up to $10,000.  Employers with at least 100 employees in Illinois will be required to obtain an EPRC in order to operate in Illinois.

3. Finally, as we reported earlier this year, by January 1, 2024, Illinois employees may earn up to 40 hours of paid leave per year that may be used for any purpose. Additional information about the Illinois Paid Leave for All Workers Act is available here.

If you have any questions regarding the issues raised in this client alert, please contact your Labor and Employment counsel at Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP.

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