Legal updates for Illinois Employers

There are a number of amendments for Illinois employers to be aware of:

Starting January 1, 2025 , Illinois is implementing the Illinois Pay Transparency Act , impacting how employers share wage and benefit information for all job postings. This applied to employers with 15 or more employees.

• Job Postings must include either a pay range or an hourly rate or annual salary.
• Job Descriptions must include a general description of benefits and other forms of compensation available for this position or you will need to disclose benefit information by referencing easily accessible public section of your website.
• Employers are required to announce, post, or otherwise make all opportunities for promotion to current employees no later than 14 calendar days after posting the job externally.
• Employers must meet the new recordkeeping requirements regarding postings, pay scales, benefits, and wages for each position for at least five years.

Use of Artificial Intelligence . Illinois recently passed legislation, effective January 1, 2026, (YOU HAVE A YEAR) that prohibits the use of artificial intelligence with respect to recruiting, hiring, promotion, and other employment decisions and conditions when the use of AI “has the effect of subjecting employees to discrimination on the basis of protects classes” or to use zip codes as a proxy for protected classes. When artificial intelligence is used by an employer, notice must be provided to the employees. It is anticipated that rule and regulations will further define the use of AI technology in the employment context.

New Limitations Period . Before the legislative amendment, the limitations period for filing a charge of discrimination with the Illinois Department of Human Rights was 300 days after the alleged violation was committed. Under the amendment, employees will now have two years from the date of the alleged violation. Notably, under federal law, the deadline to file an administrative charge with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is still 300 days.

New Protected Class – Family Responsibilities

The IHRA will add “family responsibilities” as a protected class. It will now be a civil rights violation to engage in harassment or make employment decisions (e.g., hire, recruit, promote, etc.) concerning “family responsibilities.” “Family responsibilities” means an employee’s actual or perceived provision of personal care to a family member.

Personal care is defined as activities to ensure that a covered family member’s basic medical, hygiene, nutritional, or safety needs are met or to provide transportation to medical appointments for a covered family member who is unable to meet those needs himself or herself. It also includes being physically present to provide emotional support to a covered family member with a serious health condition who is receiving inpatient or home care. Family members include an employee’s child, stepchild, spouse, domestic partner, sibling, parent, mother-in-law, father-in-law, grandchild, grandparent, or stepparent.

The new amendment will not obligate an employer to make accommodations or modifications to reasonable workplace rules or policies for an employee based on family responsibilities, including accommodations or modifications related to leave, scheduling, productivity, attendance, absenteeism, timeliness, work performance, as long as its rules or policies are applied in accordance with IHRA. Further, the new amendment will not prevent an employer from taking adverse action or otherwise enforcing reasonable workplace policies related to leave, scheduling, productivity, attendance, absenteeism, timeliness, and work performance as long as its rules or policies are applied in accordance with IHRA.

New Protected Class – Reproductive Health Decisions

The other new protected class is “reproductive health decisions,” which is defined as “a person’s decisions regarding the person’s use of contraception; fertility or sterilization care; assisted reproductive technologies; miscarriage management care; healthcare related to the continuation or termination of pregnancy; or prenatal, intranatal, or postnatal care.” Thus, “unlawful discrimination” will now encompass discrimination against a person based on actual or perceived “reproductive health decisions.”

Current Protected Classes – The IHRA prohibits discrimination based on

• Age (40+)
• Ancestry
• Arrest record (in employment and real estate transactions)
• Citizenship status (in employment)
• Color
• Conviction record (in employment)
• Disability (physical, mental, and association with a person with a disability)
• Familial status (in real estate transactions)
• Gender identity
• Marital status
• Military status
• National origin
• Order of protection status
• Pregnancy
• Race (including associated traits with race, like hairstyles)
• Religion
• Sex
• Sexual orientation
• Source of income (in real estate transactions)
• Unfavorable military discharge
• Work authorization status (in employment)

Action List for Illinois Employers

• Update your policies: Review your employee handbook and other workplace documents to ensure they reflect the changes. Update your record retention practices to allow for the longer statute of limitations.
• Train managers and employees: Educate everyone in your workplace about the new protections and the longer statute of limitations. Leaders especially need updated training regarding discrimination and harassment.
• Check for problems: Review your workplace for any potential areas of discrimination or harassment and take steps to address them. Look at how your company uses AI in the employee’s lifecycle, including during recruitment, to make sure you comply with the new regulations.
• Stay informed: Keep up-to-date on any further guidance or regulations issued by the Illinois Department of Human Rights.

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