(820 ILCS 112/1)
Sec. 1. Short Title. This Act may
be cited as the Equal Pay Act of 2003.
(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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(820 ILCS 112/5)
Sec. 5. Definitions. As used in
this Act:
"Director" means the
Director of Labor.
"Department" means the
Department of Labor.
"Employee" means any
individual permitted to work by an employer.
"Employer" means an individual,
partnership, corporation, association, business, trust, person,
or entity for whom 4 or more employees are gainfully employed
in Illinois and
includes the State of Illinois,
any state officer, department, or agency, any unit of local government,
and any school district.
(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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(820 ILCS 112/10)
Sec. 10. Prohibited acts.
(a) No employer may discriminate
between employees on the basis of sex by paying wages to an employee
at a rate less than the rate at which the employer pays wages
to another employee of the opposite sex for the same or substantially
similar work on jobs the performance of which requires equal
skill, effort, and responsibility, and which are performed under
similar working conditions, except where the payment is made
under:
(1) a seniority
system;
(2) a merit
system;
(3) a system
that measures earnings by quantity or
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quality of production; or
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(4)
a differential based on any other factor other
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than: (i) sex or (ii) a factor that
would constitute unlawful discrimination under
the Illinois Human Rights Act.
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An employer who
is paying wages in violation of this Act may not, to
comply with this Act, reduce the wages of any other
employee.
Nothing in this Act may be construed
to require an employer to pay, to any employee at a workplace in
a particular county, wages that are equal to the wages paid by
that employer at a workplace in another county to employees in
jobs the performance of which requires equal skill, effort, and
responsibility, and which are performed under similar working conditions.
(b) It is unlawful for any employer
to interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of or the attempt
to exercise any right provided under this Act. It is unlawful for
any employer to discharge or in any other manner discriminate against
any individual for inquiring about, disclosing, comparing, or otherwise
discussing the employee's wages or the wages of any other employee,
or aiding or encouraging any person to exercise his or her rights
under this Act.
(c) It is unlawful for any person
to discharge or in any other manner discriminate against any individual
because the individual:
(1) has
filed any charge or has instituted or caused
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to be instituted any proceeding under
or related to this Act;
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(2)
has given, or is about to give, any information
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in connection with any inquiry or proceeding
relating to any right provided under this Act;
or
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(3)
has testified, or is about to testify, in any
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inquiry or proceeding relating to any
right provided under this Act.
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(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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(820 ILCS 112/15)
Sec. 15. Enforcement. The Director
or his or her authorized representative shall administer and
enforce the provisions of this Act. The Director of Labor shall
adopt rules necessary to administer and enforce this Act.
The Department has the power to
conduct investigations in connection with the administration
and enforcement of this Act and the authorized officers and employees
of the Department are authorized to investigate and gather data
regarding the wages, hours, and other conditions and practices
of employment in any industry subject to this Act, and may enter
and inspect such places and such records at reasonable times
during regular business hours, question the employees and investigate
the facts, conditions, practices, or matters as he or she may
deem necessary or appropriate to determine whether any person
has violated any provision of this Act, or which may aid in the
enforcement of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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(820 ILCS 112/20)
Sec. 20. Recordkeeping requirements.
An employer subject to any provision of this Act shall make and
preserve records that document the name, address, and occupation
of each employee, the wages paid to each employee, and any other
information the Director may by rule deem necessary and appropriate
for enforcement of this Act. An employer subject to any provision
of this Act shall preserve those records for a period of not
less than 3 years and shall make reports from the records as
prescribed by rule or order of the Director.
(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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(820 ILCS 112/25)
Sec. 25. Witnesses; subpoena. The
Director of Labor or his or her authorized representative may
administer oaths, take or cause to be taken the depositions of
witnesses, and require by subpoena the attendance and testimony
of witnesses and the production of all books, records, and other
evidence relative to the matter under investigation. A subpoena
issued under this Section shall be signed and issued by the Director
of Labor or his or her authorized representative.
In case of failure of any person
to comply with any subpoena lawfully issued under this Section
or on the refusal of any witness to produce evidence or to testify
to any matter regarding which he or she may be lawfully interrogated,
it is the duty of any circuit court, upon application of the
Director, or his or her authorized representative, to compel
obedience by proceedings for contempt, as in the case of disobedience
of the requirements of a subpoena issued by such court or a refusal
to testify therein. The Director may certify to official acts.
(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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(820 ILCS 112/30)
Sec. 30. Violations; fines and
penalties.
(a) If an employee is paid by his
or her employer less than the wage to which he or she is entitled
in violation of Section 10 of this Act, the employee may recover
in a civil action the entire amount of any underpayment together
with interest and the costs and reasonable attorney's fees as
may be allowed by the court and as necessary to make the employee
whole. At the request of the employee or on a motion of the Director,
the Department may make an assignment of the wage claim in trust
for the assigning employee and may bring any legal action necessary
to collect the claim, and the employer shall be required to pay
the costs incurred in collecting the claim. Every such action
shall be brought within 3 years from the date the employee learned
of the underpayment.
(b) The Director is authorized
to supervise the payment of the unpaid wages owing to any employee
or employees under this Act and may bring any legal action necessary
to recover the amount of unpaid wages and penalties and the employer
shall be required to pay the costs. Any sums recovered by the
Director on behalf of an employee under this Section shall be
paid to the employee or employees affected.
(c) Any employer who violates any
provision of this Act or any rule adopted under the Act is subject
to a civil penalty not to exceed $2,500 for each violation for
each employee affected. In determining the amount of the penalty,
the appropriateness of the penalty to the size of the business
of the employer charged and the gravity of the violation shall
be considered. The penalty may be recovered in a civil action
brought by the Director in any circuit court.
(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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(820 ILCS 112/35)
Sec. 35. Refusal to pay wages or
final compensation; retaliatory discharge or discrimination.
(a) Any employer who has been ordered
by the Director of Labor or the court to pay wages due an employee
and who fails to do so within 15 days after the order is entered
is liable to pay a penalty of 1% per calendar day to the employee
for each day of delay in paying the wages to the employee, up
to an amount equal to twice the sum of unpaid wages due the employee.
(b) Any employer, or any agent
of an employer, who knowingly discharges or in any other manner
knowingly discriminates against any employee because that employee
has made a complaint to his or her employer, or to the Director
or his or her authorized representative, that he or she or any
employee of the employer has not been paid in accordance with
the provisions of this Act, or because that employee has instituted
or caused to be instituted any proceeding under or related to
this Act or consulted counsel for such purposes, or because that
employee has testified or is about to testify in an investigation
or proceeding under this Act, or offers any evidence of any violation
of this Act, shall be liable to the employee for such legal and
equitable relief as may be appropriate to effectuate the purposes
of this Section, the value of any lost benefits, backpay, and
front pay as appropriate so long as the employee has made reasonable
efforts to mitigate his or her damages and an additional equal
amount as liquidated damages.
(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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(820 ILCS 112/40)
Sec. 40. Notification. Every employer
covered by this Act shall post and keep posted, in conspicuous
places on the premises of the employer where notices to employees
are customarily posted, a notice, to be prepared or approved
by the Director, summarizing the requirements of this Act and
information pertaining to the filing of a charge. The Director
shall furnish copies of summaries and rules to employers upon
request without charge.
(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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(820 ILCS 112/45)
Sec. 45. Outreach and education
efforts. The Department of Labor shall conduct ongoing outreach
and education efforts concerning this Act targeted toward employers,
labor organizations, and other appropriate organizations. In
addition, the Department of Labor shall conduct studies and provide
information biennially to employers, labor organizations, and
the general public concerning the means available to eliminate
pay disparities between men and women, including:
(1) conducting
and promoting research to develop the
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means to correct the conditions leading
to the pay disparities;
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(2)
publishing and otherwise making available to
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employers, labor organizations, professional
associations, educational institutions, the
legislature, the media, and the general public
the findings resulting from studies and other
materials, relating to the pay disparities;
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(3)
providing information to employers, labor
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organizations, and other interested
persons on the means of eliminating pay disparities;
and
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(4)
developing guidelines to enable employers to
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evaluate job categories based on objective
criteria such as educational requirements,
skill requirements, independence, working conditions,
and responsibility. These guidelines shall
be designed to enable employers to voluntarily
compare wages paid for different jobs to determine
if the pay scales involved adequately and fairly
reflect the educational requirements, skill
requirements, independence, working conditions,
and responsibility for each such job with the
goal of eliminating unfair pay disparities
between occupations traditionally dominated
by men or women.
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(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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(820 ILCS 112/50)
Sec. 50. Annual Report. The Department
shall file with the Governor and the General Assembly, no later
than January 1 of each year, a report of its activities regarding
administration and enforcement of this Act for the preceding
fiscal year.
(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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(820 ILCS 112/90)
Sec. 90. Severability. The provisions
of this Act are severable under Section 1.31 of the of the Statute
on Statutes.
(Source: P.A. 93-6, eff. 1-1-04.)
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