102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
SB4040

 

Introduced 1/21/2022, by Sen. Mike Simmons

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
New Act

    Creates the Single Parents' Bill of Rights Act. Provides that an employee who is a single parent may take unpaid leave from work if the employee needs time off to care for a child's needs, tend to a child's education, or perform any duty a single parent may reasonably be responsible for. Provides that an employee shall be entitled to 5 days or 40 hours of unpaid time off per 12-month period. Provides that the employee shall provide the employer with at least 48 hours advance notice of the employee's intention to use the leave, unless providing such notice is not practicable. Creates provisions concerning using existing leave for duties of a single parent; prohibited discriminatory acts; enforcement; and notification.


LRB102 24063 SPS 33283 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

SB4040LRB102 24063 SPS 33283 b

1    AN ACT concerning employment.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Single
5Parents' Bill of Rights Act.
 
6    Section 5. Definitions. As used in this Section:
7    "Department" means the Department of Labor.
8    "Director" means the Director of Labor.
9    "Discriminate" includes not making a reasonable
10accommodation to the known limitations resulting from
11circumstances relating to being a single parent.
12    "Employee" means any person employed by an employer.
13    "Employer" means any of the following: (1) the State or
14any agency of the State; (2) any unit of local government or
15school district; or (3) any person that employs at least one
16employee.
17    "Reasonable accommodation" may include an adjustment to a
18job structure, workplace facility, or work requirement in
19response to the employee's duties as a single parent.
20    "Single parent" means the head of a single parent
21household who has sole or shared custody or is the guardian of
22a child or children, including biological children, adoptive
23children, foster children, grandchildren, and those living at

 

 

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1the single parent's residence.
 
2    Section 10. Entitlement to leave due to duties of a single
3parent.
4    (a) Leave requirement.
5        (1) Basis. An employee who is a single parent may take
6    unpaid leave from work if the employee needs time off to
7    care for a child's needs, tend to a child's education, or
8    perform any duty a single parent may reasonably be
9    responsible for.
10        (2) Period. An employee shall be entitled to 5 days or
11    40 hours of unpaid time off per 12-month period to be used
12    for the reasons described in paragraph (1).
13        (3) Schedule. Leave described in paragraph (1) may be
14    taken consecutively, intermittently, or on a reduced work
15    schedule.
16    (b) Notice. The employee shall provide the employer with
17at least 48 hours advance notice of the employee's intention
18to use the leave, unless providing such notice is not
19practicable.
20    (c) Certification. The employer may not require the
21employee to provide certification to the employer that the
22employee is a single parent.
23    (d) Confidentiality. All information provided to the
24employer pursuant to subsection (b) shall be retained in the
25strictest confidence by the employer, except to the extent

 

 

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1that disclosure is:
2        (1) requested or consented to in writing by the
3    employee; or
4        (2) otherwise required by applicable federal or State
5    law.
6    (e) Employment and benefits.
7        (1) Restoration to position.
8            (A) In general. Any employee who takes leave under
9        this Section for the intended purpose of the leave
10        shall be entitled, on return from such leave:
11                (i) to be restored by the employer to the
12            position of employment held by the employee when
13            the leave commenced; or
14                (ii) to be restored to an equivalent position
15            with equivalent employment benefits, pay, and
16            other terms and conditions of employment.
17            (B) Loss of benefits. The taking of leave under
18        this Section shall not result in the loss of any
19        employment benefit accrued prior to the date on which
20        the leave commenced.
21            (C) Limitations. Nothing in this subsection shall
22        be construed to entitle any restored employee to:
23                (i) the accrual of any seniority or employment
24            benefits during any period of leave; or
25                (ii) any right, benefit, or position of
26            employment other than any right, benefit, or

 

 

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1            position to which the employee would have been
2            entitled had the employee not taken the leave.
3            (D) Construction. Nothing in this paragraph shall
4        be construed to prohibit an employer from requiring an
5        employee on leave under this Section to report
6        periodically to the employer on the status and
7        intention of the employee to return to work.
8        (2) Maintenance of health benefits.
9            (A) Coverage. Except as provided in subparagraph
10        (B), during any period that an employee takes leave
11        under this Section, the employer shall maintain
12        coverage for the employee and any family or household
13        member under any group health plan for the duration of
14        such leave at the level and under the conditions
15        coverage would have been provided if the employee had
16        continued in employment continuously for the duration
17        of such leave.
18            (B) Failure to return from leave. The employer may
19        recover the premium that the employer paid for
20        maintaining coverage for the employee and the
21        employee's family or household member under such group
22        health plan during any period of leave under this
23        Section if:
24                (i) the employee fails to return from leave
25            under this Section after the period of leave to
26            which the employee is entitled has expired; and

 

 

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1                (ii) the employee fails to return to work for
2            a reason other than circumstances beyond the
3            control of the employee.
4    (f) Prohibited acts.
5        (1) Interference with rights.
6            (A) Exercise of rights. It shall be unlawful for
7        any employer to interfere with, restrain, or deny the
8        exercise of or the attempt to exercise any right
9        provided under this Section.
10            (B) Employer discrimination. It shall be unlawful
11        for any employer to discharge or harass any
12        individual, or otherwise discriminate against any
13        individual with respect to compensation, terms,
14        conditions, or privileges of employment of the
15        individual (including retaliation in any form or
16        manner) because the individual:
17                (i) exercised any right provided under this
18            Section; or
19                (ii) opposed any practice made unlawful by
20            this Section.
21            (C) Public agency sanctions. It shall be unlawful
22        for any public agency to deny, reduce, or terminate
23        the benefits of, otherwise sanction, or harass any
24        individual, or otherwise discriminate against any
25        individual with respect to the amount, terms, or
26        conditions of public assistance of the individual

 

 

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1        (including retaliation in any form or manner) because
2        the individual:
3                (i) exercised any right provided under this
4            Section; or
5                (ii) opposed any practice made unlawful by
6            this Section.
7        (2) Interference with proceedings or inquiries. It
8    shall be unlawful for any person to discharge or in any
9    other manner discriminate against any individual because
10    such individual:
11            (A) has filed any charge, or has instituted or
12        caused to be instituted any proceeding, under or
13        related to this Section;
14            (B) has given, or is about to give, any
15        information in connection with any inquiry or
16        proceeding relating to any right provided under this
17        Section; or
18            (C) has testified, or is about to testify, in any
19        inquiry or proceeding relating to any right provided
20        under this Section.
 
21    Section 15. Existing leave usable for duties of a single
22parent. An employee who is entitled to take paid or unpaid
23leave (including family, medical, sick, annual, personal, or
24similar leave) from employment, pursuant to federal, State, or
25local law, a collective bargaining agreement, or an employment

 

 

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1benefits program or plan, may elect to substitute any period
2of such leave for an equivalent period of leave provided under
3Section 10. The employer may not require the employee to
4substitute available paid or unpaid leave for leave provided
5under Section 10.
 
6    Section 20. Prohibited discriminatory acts. An employer
7shall not fail to hire, refuse to hire, discharge,
8constructively discharge, or harass any individual, otherwise
9discriminate against any individual with respect to the
10compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment
11of the individual, or retaliate against an individual in any
12form or manner, and a public agency shall not deny, reduce, or
13terminate the benefits of, otherwise sanction, or harass any
14individual, otherwise discriminate against any individual with
15respect to the amount, terms, or conditions of public
16assistance of the individual, or retaliate against an
17individual in any form or manner, because the individual
18involved:
19        (1) is a single parent employee;
20        (2) has taken time off to fulfill the duties of a
21    single parent; or
22        (3) has requested an adjustment to a job structure,
23    workplace facility, or work requirement, including a
24    transfer, reassignment, or modified schedule, or leave
25    because the individual is a single parent employee.
 

 

 

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1    Section 25. Enforcement.
2    (a) Department of Labor.
3        (1) The Director or his or her authorized
4    representative shall administer and enforce the provisions
5    of this Act. Any employee or a representative of employees
6    who believes his or her rights under this Act have been
7    violated may, within 3 years after the alleged violation
8    occurs, file a complaint with the Department requesting a
9    review of the alleged violation. A copy of the complaint
10    shall be sent to the person who allegedly committed the
11    violation, who shall be the respondent. Upon receipt of a
12    complaint, the Director shall cause such investigation to
13    be made as he or she deems appropriate. The investigation
14    shall provide an opportunity for a public hearing at the
15    request of any party to the review to enable the parties to
16    present information relating to the alleged violation. The
17    parties shall be given written notice of the time and
18    place of the hearing at least 7 days before the hearing.
19    Upon receiving the report of the investigation, the
20    Director shall make findings of fact. If the Director
21    finds that a violation did occur, he or she shall issue a
22    decision incorporating his or her findings and requiring
23    the party committing the violation to take such
24    affirmative action to abate the violation as the Director
25    deems appropriate, including:

 

 

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1            (A) damages equal to the amount of wages, salary,
2        employment benefits, public assistance, or other
3        compensation denied or lost to such individual by
4        reason of the violation, and the interest on that
5        amount calculated at the prevailing rate;
6            (B) such equitable relief as may be appropriate,
7        including, but not limited to, hiring, reinstatement,
8        promotion, and reasonable accommodations; and
9            (C) reasonable attorney's fees, reasonable expert
10        witness fees, and other costs of the action to be paid
11        by the respondent to a prevailing employee.
12    If the Director finds that there was no violation, he or
13she shall issue an order denying the complaint. An order
14issued by the Director under this Section shall be final and
15subject to judicial review under the Administrative Review
16Law.
17        (2) The Director shall adopt rules necessary to
18    administer and enforce this Act in accordance with the
19    Illinois Administrative Procedure Act. The Director shall
20    have the powers and the parties shall have the rights
21    provided in the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act for
22    contested cases, including, but not limited to, provisions
23    for depositions, subpoena power and procedures, and
24    discovery and protective order procedures.
25        (3) Intervention. The Attorney General of Illinois may
26    intervene on behalf of the Department if the Department

 

 

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1    certifies that the case is of general public importance.
2    Upon such intervention the court may award such relief as
3    is authorized to be granted to an employee who has filed a
4    complaint or whose representative has filed a complaint
5    under this Section.
6    (b) Refusal to pay damages. Any employer who has been
7ordered by the Director of Labor or the court to pay damages
8under this Section and who fails to do so within 30 days after
9the order is entered is liable to pay a penalty of 1% per
10calendar day to the employee for each day of delay in paying
11the damages to the employee.
 
12    Section 30. Notification. Every employer covered by this
13Act shall post and keep posted, in conspicuous places on the
14premises of the employer where notices to employees are
15customarily posted, a notice, to be prepared or approved by
16the Director of Labor, summarizing the requirements of this
17Act and information pertaining to the filing of a charge. The
18Director shall furnish copies of summaries and rules to
19employers upon request without charge. Any employer that fails
20to post the required notice may not rely on the provisions in
21subsection (b) of Section 10 to claim that the employee failed
22to inform the employer that she or he wanted or was eligible
23for leave under this Act.