98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2013 and 2014
SB2971

 

Introduced 2/4/2014, by Sen. Dale A. Righter

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
775 ILCS 5/2-102  from Ch. 68, par. 2-102
820 ILCS 55/12

    Amends the Illinois Human Rights Act. Provides that it is a civil rights violation for an employer participating in the E-Verify Program, as authorized by 8 U.S.C. 1324a, (instead of "8 U.S.C. 1324a, Notes, Pilot Programs for Employment Eligibility Confirmation (enacted by PL 104-208, div. C title IV, subtitle A)") to take certain actions while knowingly failing to follow the procedures under the E-Verify Program. Amends the Right to Privacy in the Workplace Act. Adds the scienter of "knowingly" to elements of certain violations of the Act. Replaces references to the Basic Pilot Program with references to any federal Electronic Employment Verification System in order to conform to changes made by federal Public Law 111-83, Title V, Sec. 551. Provides that an employer's responsibility under the Section concerning the E-Verify Program is limited to the most current federal statute and federal regulations in effect at the time of the alleged violation.


LRB098 19879 HEP 55098 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

SB2971LRB098 19879 HEP 55098 b

1    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Human Rights Act is amended by
5changing Section 2-102 as follows:
 
6    (775 ILCS 5/2-102)  (from Ch. 68, par. 2-102)
7    Sec. 2-102. Civil Rights Violations - Employment. It is a
8civil rights violation:
9    (A) Employers. For any employer to refuse to hire, to
10segregate, or to act with respect to recruitment, hiring,
11promotion, renewal of employment, selection for training or
12apprenticeship, discharge, discipline, tenure or terms,
13privileges or conditions of employment on the basis of unlawful
14discrimination or citizenship status.
15    (A-5) Language. For an employer to impose a restriction
16that has the effect of prohibiting a language from being spoken
17by an employee in communications that are unrelated to the
18employee's duties.
19    For the purposes of this subdivision (A-5), "language"
20means a person's native tongue, such as Polish, Spanish, or
21Chinese. "Language" does not include such things as slang,
22jargon, profanity, or vulgarity.
23    (B) Employment Agency. For any employment agency to fail or

 

 

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1refuse to classify properly, accept applications and register
2for employment referral or apprenticeship referral, refer for
3employment, or refer for apprenticeship on the basis of
4unlawful discrimination or citizenship status or to accept from
5any person any job order, requisition or request for referral
6of applicants for employment or apprenticeship which makes or
7has the effect of making unlawful discrimination or
8discrimination on the basis of citizenship status a condition
9of referral.
10    (C) Labor Organization. For any labor organization to
11limit, segregate or classify its membership, or to limit
12employment opportunities, selection and training for
13apprenticeship in any trade or craft, or otherwise to take, or
14fail to take, any action which affects adversely any person's
15status as an employee or as an applicant for employment or as
16an apprentice, or as an applicant for apprenticeships, or
17wages, tenure, hours of employment or apprenticeship
18conditions on the basis of unlawful discrimination or
19citizenship status.
20    (D) Sexual Harassment. For any employer, employee, agent of
21any employer, employment agency or labor organization to engage
22in sexual harassment; provided, that an employer shall be
23responsible for sexual harassment of the employer's employees
24by nonemployees or nonmanagerial and nonsupervisory employees
25only if the employer becomes aware of the conduct and fails to
26take reasonable corrective measures.

 

 

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1    (E) Public Employers. For any public employer to refuse to
2permit a public employee under its jurisdiction who takes time
3off from work in order to practice his or her religious beliefs
4to engage in work, during hours other than such employee's
5regular working hours, consistent with the operational needs of
6the employer and in order to compensate for work time lost for
7such religious reasons. Any employee who elects such deferred
8work shall be compensated at the wage rate which he or she
9would have earned during the originally scheduled work period.
10The employer may require that an employee who plans to take
11time off from work in order to practice his or her religious
12beliefs provide the employer with a notice of his or her
13intention to be absent from work not exceeding 5 days prior to
14the date of absence.
15    (F) Training and Apprenticeship Programs. For any
16employer, employment agency or labor organization to
17discriminate against a person on the basis of age in the
18selection, referral for or conduct of apprenticeship or
19training programs.
20    (G) Immigration-Related Practices.
21        (1) for an employer to request for purposes of
22    satisfying the requirements of Section 1324a(b) of Title 8
23    of the United States Code, as now or hereafter amended,
24    more or different documents than are required under such
25    Section or to refuse to honor documents tendered that on
26    their face reasonably appear to be genuine; or

 

 

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1        (2) for an employer participating in the E-Verify
2    Program, as authorized by 8 U.S.C. 1324a, Notes, Pilot
3    Programs for Employment Eligibility Confirmation (enacted
4    by PL 104-208, div. C title IV, subtitle A) to refuse to
5    hire, to segregate, or to act with respect to recruitment,
6    hiring, promotion, renewal of employment, selection for
7    training or apprenticeship, discharge, discipline, tenure
8    or terms, privileges or conditions of employment while
9    knowingly failing to follow without following the
10    procedures under the E-Verify Program.
11    (H) Pregnancy; peace officers and fire fighters. For a
12public employer to refuse to temporarily transfer a pregnant
13female peace officer or pregnant female fire fighter to a less
14strenuous or hazardous position for the duration of her
15pregnancy if she so requests, with the advice of her physician,
16where that transfer can be reasonably accommodated. For the
17purposes of this subdivision (H), "peace officer" and "fire
18fighter" have the meanings ascribed to those terms in Section 3
19of the Illinois Public Labor Relations Act.
20    It is not a civil rights violation for an employer to take
21any action that is required by Section 1324a of Title 8 of the
22United States Code, as now or hereafter amended.
23    (I) Pregnancy. For an employer to refuse to hire, to
24segregate, or to act with respect to recruitment, hiring,
25promotion, renewal of employment, selection for training or
26apprenticeship, discharge, discipline, tenure or terms,

 

 

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1privileges or conditions of employment on the basis of
2pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. Women
3affected by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical
4conditions shall be treated the same for all employment-related
5purposes, including receipt of benefits under fringe benefit
6programs, as other persons not so affected but similar in their
7ability or inability to work.
8(Source: P.A. 97-596, eff. 8-26-11; 98-212, eff. 8-9-13.)
 
9    Section 10. The Right to Privacy in the Workplace Act is
10amended by changing Section 12 as follows:
 
11    (820 ILCS 55/12)
12    Sec. 12. Use of Employment Eligibility Verification
13Systems.
14    (a) Prior to choosing to voluntarily enroll in any federal
15Electronic Employment Verification System, including the
16E-Verify program and the Basic Pilot program, as authorized by
178 U.S.C. 1324a, Notes, Pilot Programs for Employment
18Eligibility Confirmation (enacted by P.L. 104-208, div. C,
19title IV, subtitle A), employers are urged to consult the
20Illinois Department of Labor's website for current information
21on the accuracy of E-Verify and to review and understand an
22employer's legal responsibilities relating to the use of the
23voluntary E-Verify program.
24    (a-1) The Illinois Department of Labor (IDOL) shall post on

 

 

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1its website information or links to information from the United
2States Government Accountability Office, Westat, or a similar
3reliable source independent of the Department of Homeland
4Security regarding: (1) the accuracy of the E-Verify databases;
5(2) the approximate financial burden and expenditure of time
6that use of E-Verify requires from employers; and (3) an
7overview of an employer's responsibilities under federal and
8state law relating to the use of E-Verify.
9    (b) Upon initial enrollment in any federal an Employment
10Eligibility Verification System or within 30 days after the
11effective date of this amendatory Act of the 96th General
12Assembly, an employer enrolled in E-Verify or any other federal
13Employment Eligibility Verification System must attest, under
14penalty of perjury, on a form prescribed by the IDOL available
15on the IDOL website:
16        (1) that the employer has received the Basic Pilot or
17    E-Verify training materials from the Department of
18    Homeland Security (DHS), and that all employees who will
19    administer the program have completed the Basic Pilot or
20    E-Verify Computer Based Tutorial (CBT); and
21        (2) that the employer has posted the notice from DHS
22    indicating that the employer is enrolled in the Basic Pilot
23    or E-Verify program and the anti-discrimination notice
24    issued by the Office of Special Counsel for
25    Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC),
26    Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice in a

 

 

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1    prominent place that is clearly visible to both prospective
2    and current employees. The employer must maintain the
3    signed original of the attestation form prescribed by the
4    IDOL, as well as all CBT certificates of completion and
5    make them available for inspection or copying by the IDOL
6    at any reasonable time.
7    (c) It is a violation of this Act for an employer enrolled
8in any federal an Employment Eligibility Verification System,
9including the E-Verify program to knowingly and the Basic Pilot
10program:
11        (1) to fail to display the notices supplied by DHS and
12    OSC in a prominent place that is clearly visible to both
13    prospective and current employees;
14        (2) to allow any employee to use any federal an
15    Employment Eligibility Verification System prior to having
16    completed CBT;
17        (3) to fail to take reasonable steps to prevent an
18    employee from circumventing the requirement to complete
19    the CBT by assuming another employee's E-Verify or Basic
20    Pilot user identification or password;
21        (4) to use any federal the Employment Eligibility
22    Verification System to verify the employment eligibility
23    of job applicants prior to hiring or to otherwise use any
24    federal the Employment Eligibility Verification System to
25    screen individuals prior to hiring and prior to the
26    completion of a Form I-9;

 

 

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1        (5) to terminate an employee or take any other adverse
2    employment action against an individual prior to receiving
3    a final nonconfirmation notice from the Social Security
4    Administration or the Department of Homeland Security;
5        (6) to fail to notify an individual, in writing, of the
6    employer's receipt of a tentative nonconfirmation notice,
7    of the individual's right to contest the tentative
8    nonconfirmation notice, and of the contact information for
9    the relevant government agency or agencies that the
10    individual must contact to resolve the tentative
11    nonconfirmation notice;
12        (7) to fail to safeguard the information contained in
13    any federal the Employment Eligibility Verification
14    System, and the means of access to the system (such as
15    passwords and other privacy protections). An employer
16    shall ensure that the System is not used for any purpose
17    other than employment verification of newly hired
18    employees and shall ensure that the information contained
19    in the System and the means of access to the System are not
20    disseminated to any person other than employees who need
21    such information and access to perform the employer's
22    employment verification responsibilities.
23    (c-1) Any claim that an employer using a federal Employment
24Eligibility Verification System refused to hire, segregated,
25or acted with respect to recruitment, hiring, promotion,
26renewal or employment, selection for training or

 

 

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1apprenticeship, discharge, discipline, tenure or terms,
2privileges, or conditions of employment because the employer
3knowingly failed to follow without following the procedures of
4the Employment Eligibility Verification System, including the
5Basic Pilot and E-Verify programs, may be brought under
6paragraph (G)(2) of Section 2-102 of the Illinois Human Rights
7Act.
8    (c-2) It is a violation of this Section for an individual
9to falsely pose as an employer in order to enroll in any
10federal an Employment Eligibility Verification System or for an
11employer to use any federal an Employment Eligibility
12Verification System to access information regarding an
13individual who is not an employee of the employer.
14    (d) Preemption. Neither the State nor any of its political
15subdivisions, nor any unit of local government, including a
16home rule unit, may require any employer to use an Employment
17Eligibility Verification System, including under the following
18circumstances:
19        (1) as a condition of receiving a government contract;
20        (2) as a condition of receiving a business license; or
21        (3) as penalty for violating licensing or other similar
22    laws.
23    This subsection (d) is a denial and limitation of home rule
24powers and functions under subsection (h) of Section 6 of
25Article VII of the Illinois Constitution.
26    (e) An employer's responsibility under this Section is

 

 

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1limited to the most current federal statute and federal
2regulations in effect at the time of the alleged violation.
3(Source: P.A. 95-138, eff. 1-1-08; 96-623, eff. 1-1-10;
496-1000, eff. 7-2-10.)