Bill Text: IL HB3582 | 2021-2022 | 102nd General Assembly | Chaptered


Bill Title: Amends the Victims' Economic Security and Safety Act. Provides that victims and family members of victims of crimes of violence (in addition to victims of domestic violence, sexual violence, and gender violence) are subject to the provisions of the Act regarding unpaid leave and prohibited discriminatory acts. Amends the Unemployment Insurance Act. Provides that victims of crimes of violence shall not be barred from collecting voluntary leave benefits. Defines terms. Makes other changes.

Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 13-1)

Status: (Passed) 2021-08-20 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 102-0487 [HB3582 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2021-HB3582-Chaptered.html



Public Act 102-0487
HB3582 EnrolledLRB102 15003 JLS 20358 b
AN ACT concerning employment.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Victims' Economic Security and Safety Act
is amended by changing Sections 10, 20, 25, 30, and 45 as
follows:
(820 ILCS 180/10)
Sec. 10. Definitions. In this Act, except as otherwise
expressly provided:
(1) "Commerce" includes trade, traffic, commerce,
transportation, or communication; and "industry or
activity affecting commerce" means any activity, business,
or industry in commerce or in which a labor dispute would
hinder or obstruct commerce or the free flow of commerce,
and includes "commerce" and any "industry affecting
commerce".
(2) "Course of conduct" means a course of repeatedly
maintaining a visual or physical proximity to a person or
conveying oral or written threats, including threats
conveyed through electronic communications, or threats
implied by conduct.
(2.5) "Crime of violence" means any conduct proscribed
by Articles 9, 11, 12, 26.5, 29D, and 33A of the Criminal
Code of 2012 or a similar provision of the Criminal Code of
1961, in addition to conduct proscribed by Articles of the
Criminal Code of 2012 referenced in other definitions in
this Section.
(3) "Department" means the Department of Labor.
(4) "Director" means the Director of Labor.
(5) "Domestic violence, sexual violence, or gender
violence" means domestic violence, sexual assault, gender
violence, or stalking.
(6) "Domestic violence" means abuse, as defined in
Section 103 of the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986,
by a family or household member, as defined in Section 103
of the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986.
(7) "Electronic communications" includes
communications via telephone, mobile phone, computer,
e-mail, video recorder, fax machine, telex, pager, online
platform (including, but not limited to, any public-facing
website, web application, digital application, or social
network), or any other electronic communication, as
defined in Section 12-7.5 of the Criminal Code of 2012.
(8) "Employ" includes to suffer or permit to work.
(9) Employee.
(A) In general. "Employee" means any person
employed by an employer.
(B) Basis. "Employee" includes a person employed
as described in subparagraph (A) on a full or
part-time basis, or as a participant in a work
assignment as a condition of receipt of federal or
State income-based public assistance.
(10) "Employer" means any of the following: (A) the
State or any agency of the State; (B) any unit of local
government or school district; or (C) any person that
employs at least one employee.
(11) "Employment benefits" means all benefits provided
or made available to employees by an employer, including
group life insurance, health insurance, disability
insurance, sick leave, annual leave, educational benefits,
pensions, and profit-sharing, regardless of whether such
benefits are provided by a practice or written policy of
an employer or through an "employee benefit plan".
"Employee benefit plan" or "plan" means an employee
welfare benefit plan or an employee pension benefit plan
or a plan which is both an employee welfare benefit plan
and an employee pension benefit plan.
(12) "Family or household member", for employees with
a family or household member who is a victim of domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or any
other crime of violence, means a spouse or party to a civil
union, parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, sibling, or
any son, daughter, other person related by blood or by
present or prior marriage or civil union, other person who
shares a relationship through a child, or any other
individual whose close association with the employee is
the equivalent of a family relationship as determined by
the employee son or daughter, and persons jointly residing
in the same household.
(12.5) "Gender violence" means:
(A) one or more acts of violence or aggression
satisfying the elements of any criminal offense under the
laws of this State that are committed, at least in part, on
the basis of a person's actual or perceived sex or gender,
regardless of whether the acts resulted in criminal
charges, prosecution, or conviction;
(B) a physical intrusion or physical invasion of a
sexual nature under coercive conditions satisfying the
elements of any criminal offense under the laws of this
State, regardless of whether the intrusion or invasion
resulted in criminal charges, prosecution, or conviction;
or
(C) a threat of an act described in item (A) or (B)
causing a realistic apprehension that the originator of
the threat will commit the act.
(13) (Blank). "Parent" means the biological parent of
an employee or an individual who stood in loco parentis to
an employee when the employee was a son or daughter. "Son
or daughter" means a biological, adopted, or foster child,
a stepchild, a legal ward, or a child of a person standing
in loco parentis, who is under 18 years of age, or is 18
years of age or older and incapable of self-care because
of a mental or physical disability.
(14) "Perpetrator" means an individual who commits or
is alleged to have committed any act or threat of domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or any
other crime of violence.
(15) "Person" means an individual, partnership,
association, corporation, business trust, legal
representative, or any organized group of persons.
(16) "Public agency" means the Government of the State
or political subdivision thereof; any agency of the State,
or of a political subdivision of the State; or any
governmental agency.
(17) "Public assistance" includes cash, food stamps,
medical assistance, housing assistance, and other benefits
provided on the basis of income by a public agency or
public employer.
(18) "Reduced work schedule" means a work schedule
that reduces the usual number of hours per workweek, or
hours per workday, of an employee.
(19) "Repeatedly" means on 2 or more occasions.
(20) "Sexual assault" means any conduct proscribed by:
(i) Article 11 of the Criminal Code of 2012 except
Sections 11-35 and 11-45; (ii) Sections 12-13, 12-14,
12-14.1, 12-15, and 12-16 of the Criminal Code of 2012; or
(iii) a similar provision of the Criminal Code of 1961.
(20.5) "Sexual violence" means sexual assault.
(21) "Stalking" means any conduct proscribed by the
Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012 in
Sections 12-7.3, 12-7.4, and 12-7.5.
(22) "Victim" or "survivor" means an individual who
has been subjected to domestic violence, sexual violence,
or gender violence, or any other crime of violence.
"Victim" also includes any person described as a victim,
as defined under Section 2 of the Crime Victims
Compensation Act.
(23) "Victim services organization" means a nonprofit,
nongovernmental organization that provides assistance to
victims of domestic violence, sexual violence, or gender
violence, or any other crime of violence or to advocates
for such victims, including a rape crisis center, an
organization carrying out a domestic violence program, an
organization operating a shelter or providing counseling
services, or a legal services organization or other
organization providing assistance through the legal
process.
(Source: P.A. 101-221, eff. 1-1-20.)
(820 ILCS 180/20)
Sec. 20. Entitlement to leave due to domestic violence,
sexual violence, or gender violence, or any other crime of
violence.
(a) Leave requirement.
(1) Basis. An employee who is a victim of domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or any
other crime of violence or an employee who has a family or
household member who is a victim of domestic violence,
sexual violence, or gender violence, or any other crime of
violence whose interests are not adverse to the employee
as it relates to the domestic violence, sexual violence,
or gender violence, or any other crime of violence may
take unpaid leave from work if the employee or employee's
family or household member is experiencing an incident of
domestic violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or
any other crime of violence or to address domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or any
other crime of violence by:
(A) seeking medical attention for, or recovering
from, physical or psychological injuries caused by
domestic violence, sexual violence, or gender
violence, or any other crime of violence to the
employee or the employee's family or household member;
(B) obtaining services from a victim services
organization for the employee or the employee's family
or household member;
(C) obtaining psychological or other counseling
for the employee or the employee's family or household
member;
(D) participating in safety planning, temporarily
or permanently relocating, or taking other actions to
increase the safety of the employee or the employee's
family or household member from future domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or any
other crime of violence or ensure economic security;
or
(E) seeking legal assistance or remedies to ensure
the health and safety of the employee or the
employee's family or household member, including
preparing for or participating in any civil or
criminal legal proceeding related to or derived from
domestic violence, sexual violence, or gender
violence, or any other crime of violence.
(2) Period. Subject to subsection (c), an employee
working for an employer that employs at least 50 employees
shall be entitled to a total of 12 workweeks of leave
during any 12-month period. Subject to subsection (c), an
employee working for an employer that employs at least 15
but not more than 49 employees shall be entitled to a total
of 8 workweeks of leave during any 12-month period.
Subject to subsection (c), an employee working for an
employer that employs at least one but not more than 14
employees shall be entitled to a total of 4 workweeks of
leave during any 12-month period. The total number of
workweeks to which an employee is entitled shall not
decrease during the relevant 12-month period. This Act
does not create a right for an employee to take unpaid
leave that exceeds the unpaid leave time allowed under, or
is in addition to the unpaid leave time permitted by, the
federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C.
2601 et seq.).
(3) Schedule. Leave described in paragraph (1) may be
taken consecutively, intermittently, or on a reduced work
schedule.
(b) Notice. The employee shall provide the employer with
at least 48 hours' advance notice of the employee's intention
to take the leave, unless providing such notice is not
practicable. When an unscheduled absence occurs, the employer
may not take any action against the employee if the employee,
upon request of the employer and within a reasonable period
after the absence, provides certification under subsection
(c).
(c) Certification.
(1) In general. The employer may require the employee
to provide certification to the employer that:
(A) the employee or the employee's family or
household member is a victim of domestic violence,
sexual violence, or gender violence, or any other
crime of violence; and
(B) the leave is for one of the purposes
enumerated in paragraph (a)(1).
The employee shall provide such certification to the
employer within a reasonable period after the employer
requests certification.
(2) Contents. An employee may satisfy the
certification requirement of paragraph (1) by providing to
the employer a sworn statement of the employee, and if the
employee has possession of such document, the employee
shall provide one of the following documents upon
obtaining such documents the employee shall provide:
(A) documentation from an employee, agent, or
volunteer of a victim services organization, an
attorney, a member of the clergy, or a medical or other
professional from whom the employee or the employee's
family or household member has sought assistance in
addressing domestic violence, sexual violence, or
gender violence, or any other crime of violence and
the effects of the violence;
(B) a police or court record; or
(C) other corroborating evidence.
The employee shall choose which document to submit,
and the employer shall not request or require more than
one document to be submitted during the same 12-month
period leave is requested or taken if the reason for leave
is related to the same incident or incidents of violence
or the same perpetrator or perpetrators of the violence.
(d) Confidentiality. All information provided to the
employer pursuant to subsection (b) or (c), including a
statement of the employee or any other documentation, record,
or corroborating evidence, and the fact that the employee has
requested or obtained leave pursuant to this Section, shall be
retained in the strictest confidence by the employer, except
to the extent that disclosure is:
(1) requested or consented to in writing by the
employee; or
(2) otherwise required by applicable federal or State
law.
(e) Employment and benefits.
(1) Restoration to position.
(A) In general. Any employee who takes leave under
this Section for the intended purpose of the leave
shall be entitled, on return from such leave:
(i) to be restored by the employer to the
position of employment held by the employee when
the leave commenced; or
(ii) to be restored to an equivalent position
with equivalent employment benefits, pay, and
other terms and conditions of employment.
(B) Loss of benefits. The taking of leave under
this Section shall not result in the loss of any
employment benefit accrued prior to the date on which
the leave commenced.
(C) Limitations. Nothing in this subsection shall
be construed to entitle any restored employee to:
(i) the accrual of any seniority or employment
benefits during any period of leave; or
(ii) any right, benefit, or position of
employment other than any right, benefit, or
position to which the employee would have been
entitled had the employee not taken the leave.
(D) Construction. Nothing in this paragraph shall
be construed to prohibit an employer from requiring an
employee on leave under this Section to report
periodically to the employer on the status and
intention of the employee to return to work.
(2) Maintenance of health benefits.
(A) Coverage. Except as provided in subparagraph
(B), during any period that an employee takes leave
under this Section, the employer shall maintain
coverage for the employee and any family or household
member under any group health plan for the duration of
such leave at the level and under the conditions
coverage would have been provided if the employee had
continued in employment continuously for the duration
of such leave.
(B) Failure to return from leave. The employer may
recover the premium that the employer paid for
maintaining coverage for the employee and the
employee's family or household member under such group
health plan during any period of leave under this
Section if:
(i) the employee fails to return from leave
under this Section after the period of leave to
which the employee is entitled has expired; and
(ii) the employee fails to return to work for
a reason other than:
(I) the continuation, recurrence, or onset
of domestic violence, sexual violence, or
gender violence, or any other crime of
violence that entitles the employee to leave
pursuant to this Section; or
(II) other circumstances beyond the
control of the employee.
(C) Certification.
(i) Issuance. An employer may require an
employee who claims that the employee is unable to
return to work because of a reason described in
subclause (I) or (II) of subparagraph (B)(ii) to
provide, within a reasonable period after making
the claim, certification to the employer that the
employee is unable to return to work because of
that reason.
(ii) Contents. An employee may satisfy the
certification requirement of clause (i) by
providing to the employer:
(I) a sworn statement of the employee;
(II) documentation from an employee,
agent, or volunteer of a victim services
organization, an attorney, a member of the
clergy, or a medical or other professional
from whom the employee has sought assistance
in addressing domestic violence, sexual
violence, or gender violence, or any other
crime of violence and the effects of that
violence;
(III) a police or court record; or
(IV) other corroborating evidence.
The employee shall choose which document to submit,
and the employer shall not request or require more than
one document to be submitted.
(D) Confidentiality. All information provided to
the employer pursuant to subparagraph (C), including a
statement of the employee or any other documentation,
record, or corroborating evidence, and the fact that
the employee is not returning to work because of a
reason described in subclause (I) or (II) of
subparagraph (B)(ii) shall be retained in the
strictest confidence by the employer, except to the
extent that disclosure is:
(i) requested or consented to in writing by
the employee; or
(ii) otherwise required by applicable federal
or State law.
(f) Prohibited acts.
(1) Interference with rights.
(A) Exercise of rights. It shall be unlawful for
any employer to interfere with, restrain, or deny the
exercise of or the attempt to exercise any right
provided under this Section.
(B) Employer discrimination. It shall be unlawful
for any employer to discharge or harass any
individual, or otherwise discriminate against any
individual with respect to compensation, terms,
conditions, or privileges of employment of the
individual (including retaliation in any form or
manner) because the individual:
(i) exercised any right provided under this
Section; or
(ii) opposed any practice made unlawful by
this Section.
(C) Public agency sanctions. It shall be unlawful
for any public agency to deny, reduce, or terminate
the benefits of, otherwise sanction, or harass any
individual, or otherwise discriminate against any
individual with respect to the amount, terms, or
conditions of public assistance of the individual
(including retaliation in any form or manner) because
the individual:
(i) exercised any right provided under this
Section; or
(ii) opposed any practice made unlawful by
this Section.
(2) Interference with proceedings or inquiries. It
shall be unlawful for any person to discharge or in any
other manner discriminate (as described in subparagraph
(B) or (C) of paragraph (1)) against any individual
because such individual:
(A) has filed any charge, or has instituted or
caused to be instituted any proceeding, under or
related to this Section;
(B) has given, or is about to give, any
information in connection with any inquiry or
proceeding relating to any right provided under this
Section; or
(C) has testified, or is about to testify, in any
inquiry or proceeding relating to any right provided
under this Section.
(Source: P.A. 101-221, eff. 1-1-20.)
(820 ILCS 180/25)
Sec. 25. Existing leave usable for addressing domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or any criminal
violence. An employee who is entitled to take paid or unpaid
leave (including family, medical, sick, annual, personal, or
similar leave) from employment, pursuant to federal, State, or
local law, a collective bargaining agreement, or an employment
benefits program or plan, may elect to substitute any period
of such leave for an equivalent period of leave provided under
Section 20. The employer may not require the employee to
substitute available paid or unpaid leave for leave provided
under Section 20.
(Source: P.A. 101-221, eff. 1-1-20.)
(820 ILCS 180/30)
Sec. 30. Victims' employment sustainability; prohibited
discriminatory acts.
(a) An employer shall not fail to hire, refuse to hire,
discharge, constructively discharge, or harass any individual,
otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to
the compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of
employment of the individual, or retaliate against an
individual in any form or manner, and a public agency shall not
deny, reduce, or terminate the benefits of, otherwise
sanction, or harass any individual, otherwise discriminate
against any individual with respect to the amount, terms, or
conditions of public assistance of the individual, or
retaliate against an individual in any form or manner,
because:
(1) the individual involved:
(A) is or is perceived to be a victim of domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or any
criminal violence;
(B) attended, participated in, prepared for, or
requested leave to attend, participate in, or prepare
for a criminal or civil court proceeding relating to
an incident of domestic violence, sexual violence, or
gender violence, or any criminal violence of which the
individual or a family or household member of the
individual was a victim, or requested or took leave
for any other reason provided under Section 20;
(C) requested an adjustment to a job structure,
workplace facility, or work requirement, including a
transfer, reassignment, or modified schedule, leave, a
changed telephone number or seating assignment,
installation of a lock, or implementation of a safety
procedure in response to actual or threatened domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or any
other crime of violence, regardless of whether the
request was granted; or
(D) is an employee whose employer is subject to
Section 21 of the Workplace Violence Prevention Act;
or
(2) the workplace is disrupted or threatened by the
action of a person whom the individual states has
committed or threatened to commit domestic violence,
sexual violence, or gender violence, or any other crime of
violence against the individual or the individual's family
or household member.
(b) In this Section:
(1) "Discriminate", used with respect to the terms,
conditions, or privileges of employment or with respect to
the terms or conditions of public assistance, includes not
making a reasonable accommodation to the known limitations
resulting from circumstances relating to being a victim of
domestic violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or
any criminal violence or a family or household member
being a victim of domestic violence, sexual violence, or
gender violence, or any other crime of violence of an
otherwise qualified individual:
(A) who is:
(i) an applicant or employee of the employer
(including a public agency); or
(ii) an applicant for or recipient of public
assistance from a public agency; and
(B) who is:
(i) or is perceived to be a victim of domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or
any other crime of violence; or
(ii) with a family or household member who is
or is perceived to be a victim of domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or
any other crime of violence whose interests are
not adverse to the individual in subparagraph (A)
as it relates to the domestic violence, sexual
violence, or gender violence, or any other crime
of violence;
unless the employer or public agency can demonstrate that
the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the
operation of the employer or public agency.
A reasonable accommodation must be made in a timely
fashion. Any exigent circumstances or danger facing the
employee or his or her family or household member shall be
considered in determining whether the accommodation is
reasonable.
(2) "Qualified individual" means:
(A) in the case of an applicant or employee
described in paragraph (1)(A)(i), an individual who,
but for being a victim of domestic violence, sexual
violence, or gender violence, or any other crime of
violence or with a family or household member who is a
victim of domestic violence, sexual violence, or
gender violence, or any other crime of violence, can
perform the essential functions of the employment
position that such individual holds or desires; or
(B) in the case of an applicant or recipient
described in paragraph (1)(A)(ii), an individual who,
but for being a victim of domestic violence, sexual
violence, or gender violence, or any other crime of
violence or with a family or household member who is a
victim of domestic violence, sexual violence, or
gender violence, or any other crime of violence, can
satisfy the essential requirements of the program
providing the public assistance that the individual
receives or desires.
(3) "Reasonable accommodation" may include an
adjustment to a job structure, workplace facility, or work
requirement, including a transfer, reassignment, or
modified schedule, leave, a changed telephone number or
seating assignment, installation of a lock, or
implementation of a safety procedure, or assistance in
documenting domestic violence, sexual violence, or gender
violence, or any other crime of violence that occurs at
the workplace or in work-related settings, or any other
reasonable accommodation in response to actual or
threatened domestic violence, sexual violence, or gender
violence, or any other crime of violence.
(4) Undue hardship.
(A) In general. "Undue hardship" means an action
requiring significant difficulty or expense, when
considered in light of the factors set forth in
subparagraph (B).
(B) Factors to be considered. In determining
whether a reasonable accommodation would impose an
undue hardship on the operation of an employer or
public agency, factors to be considered include:
(i) the nature and cost of the reasonable
accommodation needed under this Section;
(ii) the overall financial resources of the
facility involved in the provision of the
reasonable accommodation, the number of persons
employed at such facility, the effect on expenses
and resources, or the impact otherwise of such
accommodation on the operation of the facility;
(iii) the overall financial resources of the
employer or public agency, the overall size of the
business of an employer or public agency with
respect to the number of employees of the employer
or public agency, and the number, type, and
location of the facilities of an employer or
public agency; and
(iv) the type of operation of the employer or
public agency, including the composition,
structure, and functions of the workforce of the
employer or public agency, the geographic
separateness of the facility from the employer or
public agency, and the administrative or fiscal
relationship of the facility to the employer or
public agency.
(c) An employer subject to Section 21 of the Workplace
Violence Prevention Act shall not violate any provisions of
the Workplace Violence Prevention Act.
(d) Confidentiality. All information provided to the
employer pursuant to this Section including a statement of the
employee or any other documentation, record, or corroborating
evidence, and the fact that the employee has requested or
obtained an accommodation pursuant to this Section shall be
retained in the strictest confidence by the employer, except
to the extent that disclosure is:
(1) requested or consented to in writing by the
employee; or
(2) otherwise required by applicable federal or State
law.
(Source: P.A. 101-221, eff. 1-1-20.)
(820 ILCS 180/45)
Sec. 45. Effect on other laws and employment benefits.
(a) More protective laws, agreements, programs, and plans.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed to supersede any
provision of any federal, State, or local law, collective
bargaining agreement, or employment benefits program or plan
that provides:
(1) greater leave benefits for victims of domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or any
other crime of violence than the rights established under
this Act; or
(2) leave benefits for a larger population of victims
of domestic violence, sexual violence, or gender violence,
or any other crime of violence (as defined in such law,
agreement, program, or plan) than the victims of domestic
violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or any
other crime of violence covered under this Act.
(b) Less protective laws, agreements, programs, and plans.
The rights established for employees who are victims of
domestic violence, sexual violence, or gender violence, or any
other crime of violence and employees with a family or
household member who is a victim of domestic violence, sexual
violence, or gender violence, or any other crime of violence
under this Act shall not be diminished by any federal, State or
local law, collective bargaining agreement, or employment
benefits program or plan.
(Source: P.A. 101-221, eff. 1-1-20.)
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