101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
HB2771

 

Introduced , by Rep. Maurice A. West II

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
820 ILCS 112/10
820 ILCS 112/30

    Amends the Equal Pay Act of 2003. Prohibits an employer from: (i) screening job applicants based on their wage or salary history, (ii) requiring that an applicant's prior wages satisfy minimum or maximum criteria, and (iii) requesting or requiring as a condition of being interviewed or as a condition of continuing to be considered for an offer of employment that an applicant disclose prior wages or salary. Prohibits an employer from seeking the salary, including benefits or other compensation or salary history, of a job applicant from any current or former employer. Limits defenses. Provides for penalties and injunctive relief. Effective immediately.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning employment.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Equal Pay Act of 2003 is amended by changing
5Sections 10 and 30 as follows:
 
6    (820 ILCS 112/10)
7    Sec. 10. Prohibited acts.
8    (a) No employer may discriminate between employees on the
9basis of sex by paying wages to an employee at a rate less than
10the rate at which the employer pays wages to another employee
11of the opposite sex for the same or substantially similar work
12on jobs the performance of which requires substantially similar
13equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and which are
14performed under similar working conditions, except where the
15payment is made under:
16        (1) a seniority system;
17        (2) a merit system;
18        (3) a system that measures earnings by quantity or
19    quality of production; or
20        (4) a differential based on any other factor other
21    than: (i) sex or (ii) a factor that would constitute
22    unlawful discrimination under the Illinois Human Rights
23    Act, provided that the factor: .

 

 

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1            (A) is not based on or derived from a differential
2        in compensation based on sex or another protected
3        characteristic;
4            (B) is job-related with respect to the position and
5        consistent with a business necessity; and
6            (C) accounts for the entire differential.
7        Such defense shall not apply if the employee
8    demonstrates that an alternative employment practice
9    exists that would serve the same business purpose without
10    producing such differential and that the employer has
11    refused to adopt such alternative practice.
12    No employer may discriminate between employees by paying
13wages to an African-American employee at a rate less than the
14rate at which the employer pays wages to another employee who
15is not African-American for the same or substantially similar
16work on jobs the performance of which requires substantially
17similar equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and which are
18performed under similar working conditions, except where the
19payment is made under:
20        (1) a seniority system;
21        (2) a merit system;
22        (3) a system that measures earnings by quantity or
23    quality of production; or
24        (4) a differential based on any other factor other
25    than: (i) race or (ii) a factor that would constitute
26    unlawful discrimination under the Illinois Human Rights

 

 

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1    Act, provided that the factor: .
2            (A) is not based on or derived from a differential
3        in compensation based on race or another protected
4        characteristic;
5            (B) is job-related with respect to the position and
6        consistent with a business necessity; and
7            (C) accounts for the entire differential.
8        Such defense shall not apply if the employee
9    demonstrates that an alternative employment practice
10    exists that would serve the same business purpose without
11    producing such differential and that the employer has
12    refused to adopt such alternative practice.
13    An employer who is paying wages in violation of this Act
14may not, to comply with this Act, reduce the wages of any other
15employee.
16    Nothing in this Act may be construed to require an employer
17to pay, to any employee at a workplace in a particular county,
18wages that are equal to the wages paid by that employer at a
19workplace in another county to employees in jobs the
20performance of which requires equal skill, effort, and
21responsibility, and which are performed under similar working
22conditions.
23    (b) It is unlawful for any employer to interfere with,
24restrain, or deny the exercise of or the attempt to exercise
25any right provided under this Act. It is unlawful for any
26employer to discharge or in any other manner discriminate

 

 

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1against any individual for inquiring about, disclosing,
2comparing, or otherwise discussing the employee's wages or the
3wages of any other employee, or aiding or encouraging any
4person to exercise his or her rights under this Act. It is
5unlawful for an employer to require an employee to sign a
6contract or waiver that would prohibit the employee from
7disclosing or discussing information about the employee's
8wages.
9    (b-5) It is unlawful for an employer to screen job
10applicants based on their wage or salary history, including by
11requiring that an applicant's prior wages, including benefits
12or other compensation, satisfy minimum or maximum criteria or
13requesting or requiring as a condition of being interviewed, as
14a condition of continuing to be considered for an offer of
15employment, as a condition of an offer of employment or an
16offer of compensation, or as a condition of employment that an
17applicant disclose prior wages or salary.
18    (b-10) It is unlawful for an employer to seek the wage or
19salary history, including benefits or other compensation, of
20any job applicant from any current or former employer. This
21subsection (b-10) does not apply if:
22        (1) the job applicant's wage or salary history is a
23    matter of public record under the Freedom of Information
24    Act, or any other equivalent State or federal law, or is
25    contained in a document completed by the job applicant's
26    current or former employer and then made available to the

 

 

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1    public by the employer, or submitted or posted by the
2    employer to comply with State or federal law; or
3        (2) the job applicant is a current employee and is
4    applying for a position with the same current employer.
5    (c) It is unlawful for any person to discharge or in any
6other manner discriminate against any individual because the
7individual:
8        (1) has filed any charge or has instituted or caused to
9    be instituted any proceeding under or related to this Act;
10        (2) has given, or is about to give, any information in
11    connection with any inquiry or proceeding relating to any
12    right provided under this Act; or
13        (3) has testified, or is about to testify, in any
14    inquiry or proceeding relating to any right provided under
15    this Act; or .
16        (4) fails to comply with any wage history inquiry.
17(Source: P.A. 100-1140, eff. 1-1-19.)
 
18    (820 ILCS 112/30)
19    Sec. 30. Violations; fines and penalties.
20    (a) If an employee is paid by his or her employer less than
21the wage to which he or she is entitled in violation of Section
2210 of this Act, the employee may recover in a civil action the
23entire amount of any underpayment together with interest,
24compensatory damages if the employee demonstrates that the
25employer acted with malice or reckless indifference, punitive

 

 

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1damages as may be appropriate, injunctive relief as may be
2appropriate, and the costs and reasonable attorney's fees as
3may be allowed by the court and as necessary to make the
4employee whole. At the request of the employee or on a motion
5of the Director, the Department may make an assignment of the
6wage claim in trust for the assigning employee and may bring
7any legal action necessary to collect the claim, and the
8employer shall be required to pay the costs incurred in
9collecting the claim. Every such action shall be brought within
105 years from the date of the underpayment. For purposes of this
11Act, "date of the underpayment" means each time wages are
12underpaid.
13    (a-5) If an employer violates subsection (b), (b-5), or
14(b-10) of Section 10, the employee may recover in a civil
15action any damages incurred, special damages not to exceed
16$10,000, injunctive relief as may be appropriate, and costs and
17reasonable attorney's fees as may be allowed by the court and
18as necessary to make the employee whole. If special damages are
19available, an employee may recover compensatory damages only to
20the extent such damages exceed the amount of special damages.
21Such action shall be brought within 5 years from the date of
22the violation.
23    (b) The Director is authorized to supervise the payment of
24the unpaid wages under subsection (a) or damages under
25subsection (b), (b-5), or (b-10) of Section 10 owing to any
26employee or employees under this Act and may bring any legal

 

 

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1action necessary to recover the amount of unpaid wages,
2damages, and penalties or to seek injunctive relief, and the
3employer shall be required to pay the costs. Any sums recovered
4by the Director on behalf of an employee under this Section
5shall be paid to the employee or employees affected.
6    (c) Employers who violate any provision of this Act or any
7rule adopted under the Act are subject to a civil penalty for
8each employee affected as follows:
9        (1) An employer with fewer than 4 employees: first
10    offense, a fine not to exceed $500; second offense, a fine
11    not to exceed $2,500; third or subsequent offense, a fine
12    not to exceed $5,000.
13        (2) An employer with 4 or more employees: first
14    offense, a fine not to exceed $2,500; second offense, a
15    fine not to exceed $3,000; third or subsequent offense, a
16    fine not to exceed $5,000.
17    An employer or person who violates subsection (b), (b-5),
18(b-10), or (c) of Section 10 is subject to a civil penalty not
19to exceed $5,000 for each violation for each employee affected.
20    (d) In determining the amount of the penalty, the
21appropriateness of the penalty to the size of the business of
22the employer charged and the gravity of the violation shall be
23considered. The penalty may be recovered in a civil action
24brought by the Director in any circuit court.
25(Source: P.A. 99-418, eff. 1-1-16.)
 
26    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon

 

 

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1becoming law.