Chuhak & Tecson, P.C. issued the following announcement on Aug. 13.
On July 31, 2019, Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law bipartisan legislation amending the Illinois Equal Pay Act. Under the new law, Illinois employers will be prohibited from screening job applications based on wage or salary history and from requiring applicants to disclose their prior wage or salary, benefits or other compensation. Illinois employers also will be barred from seeking that information from applicants’ current or former employers. The new law will become effective on September 30, 2019, and provides for stiff penalties and the recovery of costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees from employers who violate these prohibitions.
All Illinois employers should review their job applications and interviewing processes to eliminate inquiries about past salary or compensation. Additionally, employers should examine policy manuals, employment agreements, offer letters and any severance agreements to remove any restrictions on employees discussing their salaries or compensation.
When signing the new law, Governor Pritzker declared that, “one’s history should not dictate one’s future, that no person should be held back from earning their true value because of how much money they were paid in a previous job.”
Original source can be found here.