[ Home ] [ ILCS ] [ Search ] [ Bottom ]
[ Other General Assemblies ]
Public Act 92-0392
SB281 Enrolled LRB9206470WHcs
AN ACT concerning wages.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Minimum Wage Law is amended by changing
Section 12 as follows:
(820 ILCS 105/12) (from Ch. 48, par. 1012)
Sec. 12. (a) If any employee is paid by his employer
less than the wage to which he is entitled under the
provisions of this Act, the employee may recover in a civil
action the amount of any such underpayments together with
costs and such reasonable attorney's fees as may be allowed
by the Court, and any agreement between him and his employer
to work for less than such wage is no defense to such action.
At the request of the employee or on motion of the Director
of Labor, the Department of Labor may make an assignment of
such wage claim in trust for the assigning employee and may
bring any legal action necessary to collect such claim, and
the employer shall be required to pay the costs incurred in
collecting such claim. Every such action shall be brought
within 3 years from the date of the underpayment. Such
employer shall be liable to the Department of Labor for 20%
of the total employer's underpayment and shall be
additionally liable to the employee for punitive damages in
the amount of 2% of the amount of any such underpayments for
each month following the date of payment during which such
underpayments remain unpaid. The Director may promulgate
rules for the collection of these penalties. The amount of a
penalty may be determined, and the penalty may be assessed,
through an administrative hearing. The penalty may be
recovered in a civil action brought by the Director of Labor
in any circuit court. The penalty shall be imposed in cases
in which an employer's conduct is proven by a preponderance
of the evidence to be willful. In any such action, the
Director of Labor shall be represented by the Attorney
General.
(b) The Director is authorized to supervise the payment
of the unpaid minimum wages and the unpaid overtime
compensation owing to any employee or employees under
Sections 4 and 4a of this Act and may bring any legal action
necessary to recover the amount of the unpaid minimum wages
and unpaid overtime compensation and an equal additional
amount as punitive damages, and the employer shall be
required to pay the costs. The action shall be brought within
5 years from the date of the failure to pay the wages or
compensation. Any sums thus recovered by the Director on
behalf of an employee pursuant to this subsection shall be
paid to the employee or employees affected. Any sums which,
more than one year after being thus recovered, the Director
is unable to pay to an employee shall be deposited into the
General Revenue Fund.
(Source: P.A. 88-431.)
Passed in the General Assembly May 24, 2001.
Approved August 16, 2001.
[ Top ]