Bill Text: IL HB0252 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Engrossed

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Amends the Illinois Human Rights Act. Provides that "employer" includes any person employing one (instead of 15) or more employees within Illinois during 20 or more calendar weeks within the calendar year of or preceding the alleged violation. Provides that "employer" does not include any place of worship with respect to the employment of individuals of a particular religion to perform work connected with the carrying on by the place of worship of its activities.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 50-0)

Status: (Passed) 2019-08-20 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 101-0430 [HB0252 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2019-HB0252-Engrossed.html

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AN ACT concerning human rights.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Human Rights Act is amended by
changing Section 2-101 as follows:
(775 ILCS 5/2-101) (from Ch. 68, par. 2-101)
Sec. 2-101. Definitions. The following definitions are
applicable strictly in the context of this Article.
(A) Employee.
(1) "Employee" includes:
(a) Any individual performing services for
remuneration within this State for an employer;
(b) An apprentice;
(c) An applicant for any apprenticeship.
For purposes of subsection (D) of Section 2-102 of this
Act, "employee" also includes an unpaid intern. An unpaid
intern is a person who performs work for an employer under
the following circumstances:
(i) the employer is not committed to hiring the
person performing the work at the conclusion of the
intern's tenure;
(ii) the employer and the person performing the
work agree that the person is not entitled to wages for

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the work performed; and
(iii) the work performed:
(I) supplements training given in an
educational environment that may enhance the
employability of the intern;
(II) provides experience for the benefit of
the person performing the work;
(III) does not displace regular employees;
(IV) is performed under the close supervision
of existing staff; and
(V) provides no immediate advantage to the
employer providing the training and may
occasionally impede the operations of the
employer.
(2) "Employee" does not include:
(a) (Blank);
(b) Individuals employed by persons who are not
"employers" as defined by this Act;
(c) Elected public officials or the members of
their immediate personal staffs;
(d) Principal administrative officers of the State
or of any political subdivision, municipal corporation
or other governmental unit or agency;
(e) A person in a vocational rehabilitation
facility certified under federal law who has been
designated an evaluee, trainee, or work activity

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client.
(B) Employer.
(1) "Employer" includes:
(a) Any person employing one 15 or more employees
within Illinois during 20 or more calendar weeks within
the calendar year of or preceding the alleged
violation;
(b) Any person employing one or more employees when
a complainant alleges civil rights violation due to
unlawful discrimination based upon his or her physical
or mental disability unrelated to ability, pregnancy,
or sexual harassment;
(c) The State and any political subdivision,
municipal corporation or other governmental unit or
agency, without regard to the number of employees;
(d) Any party to a public contract without regard
to the number of employees;
(e) A joint apprenticeship or training committee
without regard to the number of employees.
(2) "Employer" does not include any place of worship,
religious corporation, association, educational
institution, society, or non-profit nursing institution
conducted by and for those who rely upon treatment by
prayer through spiritual means in accordance with the
tenets of a recognized church or religious denomination
with respect to the employment of individuals of a

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particular religion to perform work connected with the
carrying on by such place of worship, corporation,
association, educational institution, society or
non-profit nursing institution of its activities.
(C) Employment Agency. "Employment Agency" includes both
public and private employment agencies and any person, labor
organization, or labor union having a hiring hall or hiring
office regularly undertaking, with or without compensation, to
procure opportunities to work, or to procure, recruit, refer or
place employees.
(D) Labor Organization. "Labor Organization" includes any
organization, labor union, craft union, or any voluntary
unincorporated association designed to further the cause of the
rights of union labor which is constituted for the purpose, in
whole or in part, of collective bargaining or of dealing with
employers concerning grievances, terms or conditions of
employment, or apprenticeships or applications for
apprenticeships, or of other mutual aid or protection in
connection with employment, including apprenticeships or
applications for apprenticeships.
(E) Sexual Harassment. "Sexual harassment" means any
unwelcome sexual advances or requests for sexual favors or any
conduct of a sexual nature when (1) submission to such conduct
is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of
an individual's employment, (2) submission to or rejection of
such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for

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employment decisions affecting such individual, or (3) such
conduct has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering
with an individual's work performance or creating an
intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment.
(F) Religion. "Religion" with respect to employers
includes all aspects of religious observance and practice, as
well as belief, unless an employer demonstrates that he is
unable to reasonably accommodate an employee's or prospective
employee's religious observance or practice without undue
hardship on the conduct of the employer's business.
(G) Public Employer. "Public employer" means the State, an
agency or department thereof, unit of local government, school
district, instrumentality or political subdivision.
(H) Public Employee. "Public employee" means an employee of
the State, agency or department thereof, unit of local
government, school district, instrumentality or political
subdivision. "Public employee" does not include public
officers or employees of the General Assembly or agencies
thereof.
(I) Public Officer. "Public officer" means a person who is
elected to office pursuant to the Constitution or a statute or
ordinance, or who is appointed to an office which is
established, and the qualifications and duties of which are
prescribed, by the Constitution or a statute or ordinance, to
discharge a public duty for the State, agency or department
thereof, unit of local government, school district,

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instrumentality or political subdivision.
(J) Eligible Bidder. "Eligible bidder" means a person who,
prior to contract award or prior to bid opening for State
contracts for construction or construction-related services,
has filed with the Department a properly completed, sworn and
currently valid employer report form, pursuant to the
Department's regulations. The provisions of this Article
relating to eligible bidders apply only to bids on contracts
with the State and its departments, agencies, boards, and
commissions, and the provisions do not apply to bids on
contracts with units of local government or school districts.
(K) Citizenship Status. "Citizenship status" means the
status of being:
(1) a born U.S. citizen;
(2) a naturalized U.S. citizen;
(3) a U.S. national; or
(4) a person born outside the United States and not a
U.S. citizen who is not an unauthorized alien and who is
protected from discrimination under the provisions of
Section 1324b of Title 8 of the United States Code, as now
or hereafter amended.
(Source: P.A. 99-78, eff. 7-20-15; 99-758, eff. 1-1-17; 100-43,
eff. 8-9-17.)