New Requirements to Provide PTO in Illinois

New Requirements to Provide PTO in Illinois

Effective January 1, 2024, employees in Illinois can earn and use up to 40 hours of paid leave during a year. The new Illinois law applies to any size employer with employees in the State. Unlike paid sick leave in many other states and local jurisdictions, Illinois’ version is not sick leave, but instead is PTO that can be used for any reason. Cook County and the City of Chicago already have their own separate paid sick leave ordinances, so employers will not need to comply with the State law inside of Cook County or Chicago if they already comply with the local ordinances. However, if Cook County and/or the City of Chicago amend their respective sick leave ordinances on or after January 1, 2024, those ordinances may no longer be eligible for this exclusion. The new State law also does not apply to employees working under a collective bargaining agreement (“CBA”) already in effect on January 1, 2024, but would apply after the then-current CBA expires unless there is an express waiver in the CBA. In-State employees will accrue one hour of paid leave for every 40 hours worked and can accrue and use a maximum of 40 paid leave hours in a year. Although paid leave hours start to accrue as of either January 1, 2024 or the time of hire, whichever is later, there is a 90-day waiting period before employees can use them. Unused hours must be carried over from year to year and do not need to be paid out upon the end of employment; however, they must be reinstated if the employee is rehired within 12 months of separation. The employer can also choose to frontload the 40 hours at the start of each year instead of using the accrual method. A poster explaining employees’ rights to paid leave must be posted at the worksite, and a model poster will be made available by the State. The text of the law is available here and preliminary FAQs are available here.