Illinois Employment Law
In addition to being protected from certain kinds of discrimination and retaliation under state law in Illinois, many workers also receive the following benefits:
- A minimum wage higher than the federal standard (even higher in Chicago)
- A 20-minute meal period during any shift that lasts 7.5 hours or more
- Full wages for all of the time they spend working
- All pay you were promised and protection from deductions from your pay
- The right to communicate with your coworkers about your wages
- Paid sick leave and unpaid time off
- Payout for accrued but unused vacation upon termination
- Privacy – applicants cannot be asked about prior workplace injuries during a job interview, and applicants and employees cannot be asked for passwords to social media accounts
- A fresh start – applicants and employees typically cannot be denied a job on the basis of their record of arrest or credit score.
- Protections for taking time off work to care for family members
- Equal pay for equal work
- Breaks and a private area in which to express breast milk
- The right to review your personnel file and prepare a rebuttal to a negative performance review
- Unpaid time off to vote, serve on a jury or attend a parent/teacher conference
- The right to refuse to engage in conduct which you believe is illegal
- Protection for reporting illegal conduct to authorities or refusing to engage in illegal conduct
These are just some of the rights state law provides (some of which only larger employers need to provide). You can also read more about Employment Law.
Responsibilities You Need To Know
With these rights comes considerable responsibility for Illinois executives, managers, and human resources professionals. These types of employees can be sued individually under federal or state laws for many different types of conduct, including:
- Failing to pay wages owed
- Sexual harassment
- Failing to provide rights under the FMLA
- Race discrimination
- Retaliation
If you are accused of these things individually, or have observed them or other illegal conduct or been asked to engage in this or other illegal conduct by your employer, you should consult an employment attorney.
Contact Wood Law
If you believe that an employer has violated any of the employment laws above, please contact Kaplan Law Illinois today to learn more about your rights.