Illinois: Employee Sick Leave Act Mandates Greater Flexibility on use of Leave Benefits
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APPLIES TO All Illinois Employers who offer Paid Sick Leave |
EFFECTIVE January 1, 2017 |
QUESTIONS? Contact HR On-Call |
Although Illinois does not mandate statewide paid sick leave, the recent Employee Sick Leave Act (the “Act”) requires Illinois employers who do provide paid sick leave (“PSL”) to allow employees to use PSL to care for their child, spouse, sibling, parent, parents-in-law, stepparents, grandchildren, or grandparents. Such care may include attending to an illness, injury, or medical appointment. Employees must be allowed to use PSL to care for their family members on the same terms that they would use PSL for their own illness or injury. Employers cannot deny employees the right to care for a specified family member in accordance with the Act. Retaliation or adverse employment actions taken against employees for using or attempting to us their rightful PSL benefits is prohibited.
Employers may limit PSL benefits to an amount not less than the PSL that would be accrued during six months of the employee’s then-current rate of entitlement—in other words, employers can cap the amount of PSL used to care for a family member to one-half of an employee’s yearly total PSL.
If the employer already uses a paid time off policy that allows workers to use such time to care for family members, the employer is not required to modify its policies.
As stated, the Act applies to employers who optionally elect, or are required by local law (e.g., Chicago’s ordinance), to provide PSL. Note that the Act does not require employers to provide PSL if they are not already mandated to do so.
Action Items
- Read the full text of HB 6162 here.
- Contact ManagEase at (888) 230-3231 for assistance in reviewing and revising paid sick leave policies and procedures for compliance.
Disclaimer: This document is designed to provide general information and guidance concerning employment-related issues. It is presented with the understanding that ManagEase is not engaged in rendering any legal opinions. If a legal opinion is needed, please contact the services of your own legal adviser.
© 2016 ManagEase, Incorporated.
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