100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018
SB2537

 

Introduced 2/6/2018, by Sen. Melinda Bush

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
775 ILCS 5/2-101  from Ch. 68, par. 2-101

    Amends the Illinois Human Rights Act. Deletes language providing that "employee" does not include members of the immediate personal staffs of elected public officials.


LRB100 17307 HEP 32468 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

SB2537LRB100 17307 HEP 32468 b

1    AN ACT concerning human rights.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Human Rights Act is amended by
5changing Section 2-101 as follows:
 
6    (775 ILCS 5/2-101)  (from Ch. 68, par. 2-101)
7    Sec. 2-101. Definitions. The following definitions are
8applicable strictly in the context of this Article.
9    (A) Employee.
10        (1) "Employee" includes:
11            (a) Any individual performing services for
12        remuneration within this State for an employer;
13            (b) An apprentice;
14            (c) An applicant for any apprenticeship.
15        For purposes of subsection (D) of Section 2-102 of this
16    Act, "employee" also includes an unpaid intern. An unpaid
17    intern is a person who performs work for an employer under
18    the following circumstances:
19            (i) the employer is not committed to hiring the
20        person performing the work at the conclusion of the
21        intern's tenure;
22            (ii) the employer and the person performing the
23        work agree that the person is not entitled to wages for

 

 

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

 

 

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

 

 

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1    to perform work connected with the carrying on by such
2    corporation, association, educational institution, society
3    or non-profit nursing institution of its activities.
4    (C) Employment Agency. "Employment Agency" includes both
5public and private employment agencies and any person, labor
6organization, or labor union having a hiring hall or hiring
7office regularly undertaking, with or without compensation, to
8procure opportunities to work, or to procure, recruit, refer or
9place employees.
10    (D) Labor Organization. "Labor Organization" includes any
11organization, labor union, craft union, or any voluntary
12unincorporated association designed to further the cause of the
13rights of union labor which is constituted for the purpose, in
14whole or in part, of collective bargaining or of dealing with
15employers concerning grievances, terms or conditions of
16employment, or apprenticeships or applications for
17apprenticeships, or of other mutual aid or protection in
18connection with employment, including apprenticeships or
19applications for apprenticeships.
20    (E) Sexual Harassment. "Sexual harassment" means any
21unwelcome sexual advances or requests for sexual favors or any
22conduct of a sexual nature when (1) submission to such conduct
23is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of
24an individual's employment, (2) submission to or rejection of
25such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for
26employment decisions affecting such individual, or (3) such

 

 

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1conduct has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering
2with an individual's work performance or creating an
3intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment.
4    (F) Religion. "Religion" with respect to employers
5includes all aspects of religious observance and practice, as
6well as belief, unless an employer demonstrates that he is
7unable to reasonably accommodate an employee's or prospective
8employee's religious observance or practice without undue
9hardship on the conduct of the employer's business.
10    (G) Public Employer. "Public employer" means the State, an
11agency or department thereof, unit of local government, school
12district, instrumentality or political subdivision.
13    (H) Public Employee. "Public employee" means an employee of
14the State, agency or department thereof, unit of local
15government, school district, instrumentality or political
16subdivision. "Public employee" does not include public
17officers or employees of the General Assembly or agencies
18thereof.
19    (I) Public Officer. "Public officer" means a person who is
20elected to office pursuant to the Constitution or a statute or
21ordinance, or who is appointed to an office which is
22established, and the qualifications and duties of which are
23prescribed, by the Constitution or a statute or ordinance, to
24discharge a public duty for the State, agency or department
25thereof, unit of local government, school district,
26instrumentality or political subdivision.

 

 

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1    (J) Eligible Bidder. "Eligible bidder" means a person who,
2prior to contract award or prior to bid opening for State
3contracts for construction or construction-related services,
4has filed with the Department a properly completed, sworn and
5currently valid employer report form, pursuant to the
6Department's regulations. The provisions of this Article
7relating to eligible bidders apply only to bids on contracts
8with the State and its departments, agencies, boards, and
9commissions, and the provisions do not apply to bids on
10contracts with units of local government or school districts.
11    (K) Citizenship Status. "Citizenship status" means the
12status of being:
13        (1) a born U.S. citizen;
14        (2) a naturalized U.S. citizen;
15        (3) a U.S. national; or
16        (4) a person born outside the United States and not a
17    U.S. citizen who is not an unauthorized alien and who is
18    protected from discrimination under the provisions of
19    Section 1324b of Title 8 of the United States Code, as now
20    or hereafter amended.
21(Source: P.A. 99-78, eff. 7-20-15; 99-758, eff. 1-1-17; 100-43,
22eff. 8-9-17.)