94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2005 and 2006
HB2440

 

Introduced 02/17/05, by Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
820 ILCS 405/502 new
820 ILCS 405/601   from Ch. 48, par. 431
820 ILCS 405/603   from Ch. 48, par. 433
820 ILCS 405/604   from Ch. 48, par. 434

    Amends the Unemployment Insurance Act. Provides that an individual is not ineligible for benefits solely because his or her unemployment is due to a stoppage of work because of a labor dispute where he or she is or was last employed. Provides that the disqualifications based on voluntary leaving and refusal of work do not apply to an individual whose unemployment is due to a stoppage of work because of a labor dispute where he or she is or was last employed.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY
STATE MANDATES ACT MAY REQUIRE REIMBURSEMENT

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1     AN ACT concerning employment.
 
2     Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
 
4     Section 5. The Unemployment Insurance Act is amended by
5 adding Section 502 and changing Sections 601, 603, and 604 as
6 follows:
 
7     (820 ILCS 405/502 new)
8     Sec. 502. Labor dispute. With respect to any week beginning
9 on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the
10 94th General Assembly, an individual is not ineligible for
11 benefits solely because his or her unemployment is due to a
12 stoppage of work because of a labor dispute at the factory,
13 establishment, or other premises at which he or she is or was
14 last employed.
 
15     (820 ILCS 405/601)  (from Ch. 48, par. 431)
16     Sec. 601. Voluntary leaving.
17      A. An individual shall be ineligible for benefits for the
18 week in which he has left work voluntarily without good cause
19 attributable to the employing unit and, thereafter, until he
20 has become reemployed and has had earnings equal to or in
21 excess of his current weekly benefit amount in each of four
22 calendar weeks which are either for services in employment, or
23 have been or will be reported pursuant to the provisions of the
24 Federal Insurance Contributions Act by each employing unit for
25 which such services are performed and which submits a statement
26 certifying to that fact.
27     B. The provisions of this Section shall not apply to an
28 individual who has left work voluntarily:
29         1. Because he is deemed physically unable to perform
30     his work by a licensed and practicing physician, or has
31     left work voluntarily upon the advice of a licensed and

 

 

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1     practicing physician that assistance is necessary for the
2     purpose of caring for his spouse, child, or parent who is
3     in poor physical health and such assistance will not allow
4     him to perform the usual and customary duties of his
5     employment, and he has notified the employing unit of the
6     reasons for his absence;
7         2. To accept other bona fide work and, after such
8     acceptance, the individual is either not unemployed in each
9     of 2 weeks, or earns remuneration for such work equal to at
10     least twice his current weekly benefit amount;
11         3. In lieu of accepting a transfer to other work
12     offered to the individual by the employing unit under the
13     terms of a collective bargaining agreement or pursuant to
14     an established employer plan, program, or policy, if the
15     acceptance of such other work by the individual would
16     require the separation from that work of another individual
17     currently performing it;
18         4. Solely because of the sexual harassment of the
19     individual by another employee. Sexual harassment means
20     (1) unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors,
21     sexually motivated physical contact or other conduct or
22     communication which is made a term or condition of the
23     employment or (2) the employee's submission to or rejection
24     of such conduct or communication which is the basis for
25     decisions affecting employment, or (3) when such conduct or
26     communication has the purpose or effect of substantially
27     interfering with an individual's work performance or
28     creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working
29     environment and the employer knows or should know of the
30     existence of the harassment and fails to take timely and
31     appropriate action;
32         5. Which he had accepted after separation from other
33     work, and the work which he left voluntarily would be
34     deemed unsuitable under the provisions of Section 603;
35         6. (a) Because the individual left work due to
36     circumstances resulting from the individual being a victim

 

 

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1     of domestic violence as defined in Section 103 of the
2     Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986; and provided, such
3     individual has made reasonable efforts to preserve the
4     employment.
5         For the purposes of this paragraph 6, the individual
6     shall be treated as being a victim of domestic violence if
7     the individual provides the following:
8             (i) written notice to the employing unit of the
9         reason for the individual's voluntarily leaving; and
10             (ii) to the Department provides:
11                 (A) an order of protection or other
12             documentation of equitable relief issued by a
13             court of competent jurisdiction; or
14                 (B) a police report or criminal charges
15             documenting the domestic violence; or
16                 (C) medical documentation of the domestic
17             violence; or
18                 (D) evidence of domestic violence from a
19             counselor, social worker, health worker or
20             domestic violence shelter worker.
21         (b) If the individual does not meet the provisions of
22     subparagraph (a), the individual shall be held to have
23     voluntarily terminated employment for the purpose of
24     determining the individual's eligibility for benefits
25     pursuant to subsection A.
26         (c) Notwithstanding any other provision to the
27     contrary, evidence of domestic violence experienced by an
28     individual, including the individual's statement and
29     corroborating evidence, shall not be disclosed by the
30     Department unless consent for disclosure is given by the
31     individual.
32     C. With respect to any week beginning on or after the
33 effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General
34 Assembly, subsection A does not apply to an individual whose
35 unemployment is due to a stoppage of work because of a labor
36 dispute at the factory, establishment, or other premises at

 

 

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1 which he or she is or was last employed.
2 (Source: P.A. 93-634, eff. 1-1-04.)
 
3     (820 ILCS 405/603)  (from Ch. 48, par. 433)
4     Sec. 603. Refusal of work.
5     A. An individual shall be ineligible for benefits if he has
6 failed, without good cause, either to apply for available,
7 suitable work when so directed by the employment office or the
8 Director, or to accept suitable work when offered him by the
9 employment office or an employing unit, or to return to his
10 customary self-employment (if any) when so directed by the
11 employment office or the Director. Such ineligibility shall
12 continue for the week in which such failure occurred and,
13 thereafter, until he has become reemployed and has had earnings
14 equal to or in excess of his current weekly benefit amount in
15 each of four calendar weeks which are either for services in
16 employment, or have been or will be reported pursuant to the
17 provisions of the Federal Insurance Contributions Act by each
18 employing unit for which such services are performed and which
19 submits a statement certifying to that fact.
20     In determining whether or not any work is suitable for an
21 individual, consideration shall be given to the degree of risk
22 involved to his health, safety, and morals, his physical
23 fitness and prior training, his experience and prior earnings,
24 his length of unemployment and prospects for securing local
25 work in his customary occupation, and the distance of the
26 available work from his residence.
27     B. With respect to any week beginning on or after the
28 effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General
29 Assembly, subsection A does not apply to an individual whose
30 unemployment is due to a stoppage of work because of a labor
31 dispute at the factory, establishment, or other premises at
32 which he or she is or was last employed.
33     C. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Act, no
34 work shall be deemed suitable and benefits shall not be denied
35 under this Act to any otherwise eligible individual for

 

 

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1 refusing to accept new work under any of the following
2 conditions:
3     If the position offered is vacant due directly to a strike,
4 lockout, or other labor dispute; if the wages, hours, or other
5 conditions of the work offered are substantially less favorable
6 to the individual than those prevailing for similar work in the
7 locality; if, as a condition of being employed, the individual
8 would be required to join a company union or to resign from or
9 refrain from joining any bona fide labor organization; if the
10 position offered is a transfer to other work offered to the
11 individual by the employing unit under the terms of a
12 collective bargaining agreement or pursuant to an established
13 employer plan, program, or policy, when the acceptance of such
14 other work by the individual would require the separation from
15 that work of another individual currently performing it.
16 (Source: P.A. 82-22.)
 
17     (820 ILCS 405/604)  (from Ch. 48, par. 434)
18     Sec. 604. Labor dispute. This Section applies only with
19 respect to weeks beginning before the effective date of this
20 amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly.
21     An individual shall be ineligible for benefits for any week
22 with respect to which it is found that his total or partial
23 unemployment is due to a stoppage of work which exists because
24 of a labor dispute at the factory, establishment, or other
25 premises at which he is or was last employed. The term "labor
26 dispute" does not include an individual's refusal to work
27 because of his employer's failure to pay accrued earned wages
28 within 10 working days from the date due, or to pay any other
29 uncontested accrued obligation arising out of his employment
30 within 10 working days from the date due.
31     For the purpose of disqualification under this Section the
32 term "labor dispute" does not include a lockout by an employer
33 for any week during which (1) the employer refuses to meet
34 under reasonable conditions with the recognized or certified
35 collective bargaining representative of the locked out

 

 

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1 employees to discuss the issues giving rise to the lockout or
2 (2) there is a final adjudication under the National Labor
3 Relations Act that during the period of the lockout the
4 employer has refused to bargain in good faith with the
5 recognized or certified collective bargaining representative
6 of the locked-out employees over issues giving rise to the
7 lockout, or (3) the lockout violates the provisions of an
8 existing collective bargaining agreement. An individual's
9 total or partial unemployment resulting from any reduction in
10 operations or reduction of force or layoff of employees by an
11 employer made in the course of or in anticipation of collective
12 bargaining negotiations between a labor organization and such
13 employer, is not due to a stoppage of work which exists because
14 of a labor dispute until the date of actual commencement of a
15 strike or lockout.
16     This Section shall not apply if it is shown that (A) the
17 individual is not participating in or financing or directly
18 interested in the labor dispute which caused the stoppage of
19 work and (B) he does not belong to a grade or class of workers
20 of which immediately before the commencement of the stoppage
21 there were members employed at the premises at which the
22 stoppage occurs, any of whom are participating in or financing
23 or directly interested in the dispute; provided, that a lockout
24 by the employer or an individual's failure to cross a picket
25 line at such factory, establishment, or other premises shall
26 not, in itself, be deemed to be participation by him in the
27 labor dispute. If in any case, separate branches of work which
28 are commonly conducted as separate businesses in separate
29 premises are conducted in separate departments of the same
30 premises, each such department shall, for the purpose of this
31 Section, be deemed to be a separate factory, establishment, or
32 other premises.
33     Whenever any claim involves the provisions of this Section,
34 the claims adjudicator referred to in Section 702 shall make a
35 separate determination as to the eligibility or ineligibility
36 of the claimant with respect to the provisions of this Section.

 

 

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1 This separate determination may be appealed to the Director in
2 the manner prescribed by Section 800.
3 (Source: P.A. 85-956.)