Section 320.260  Enforcement, Penalties and Relief

a)         Wage Underpayment, and Penalties for Underpayment of Wages

1)         Upon investigating and finding of a violation of Section 10(a) of the Act, the Director may order and supervise payment of any underpayment of wages owing to any employee or employees pursuant to Section 30(b) of the Act, payable to the employee or employees. possible, by the Director.

2)         An employer with fewer than 4 employees who violates Section 10(a) of the Act is subject to a civil penalty ordered by the Director pursuant to Section 30(c) of the Act as follows:

A)        A penalty not to exceed $500 for the first offense;

B)        A penalty not to exceed $2,500 for the second offense; and

C)        A penalty not to exceed $5,000 for the third or subsequent offense.

3)         An employer with between 4 and 99 employees who violates Section 10(a) of the Act is subject to a civil penalty ordered by the Director pursuant to Section 30(c) of the Act as follows:

A)        A penalty not to exceed $2,500 for the first offense;

B)        A penalty not to exceed $3,000 for the second offense; and

C)        A penalty not to exceed $5,000 for the third or subsequent offense.

4)         An employer with 100 or more employees who violates Section 10(a) of the Act is subject to a civil penalty ordered by the Director pursuant to Section 30(c) of the Act not to exceed $10,000.

5)         Any employer who has been demanded by the Director to pay wages due an employee and who fails to do so within 15 calendar days after such demand or the order is entered shall be liable to pay a penalty of 1% per calendar day to the employee for each day of delay in paying such wages to the employee, up to an amount equal to twice the sum of unpaid wages due the employee. [820 ILCS 112/35(a)]

b)         Penalties for Pay Transparency and Promotional Opportunity Violations Only

1)         Upon investigating and finding a violation of Section 10(b-25) of the Act regarding a job posting or batch of job postings that is active at the time the Department issues a notice of violation, if the employer or other respondent fails to cure the violation in the time allowed, the Department may impose a penalty as follows:

A)        For a first offense, following a cure period of 14 days to remedy the violation, a fine not to exceed $500 at the discretion of the Department. A first offense may be either a single job posting that violates Section 10(b-25) or multiple job postings that violate Section 10(b-25) and are identified at the same time by the Department. The Department shall have discretion to waive any civil penalty under this this subsection (b)(1)(A).

B)        For a second offense, following a cure period of 7 days to remedy the violation, a fine not to exceed $2,500 at the discretion of the Department. A second offense is a single job posting that violates Section 10(b-25).  The Department shall have discretion to waive any civil penalty under this subsection (b)(1)(A).

C)        For a third or subsequent offense, with no cure period, a fine not to exceed $10,000 at the discretion of the Department. A third or subsequent offense is a single job posting that violates Section 10(b-25).  The Department shall have discretion to waive any civil penalty under this this subsection (b)(1)(A).  If a company has had a third offense, it shall incur automatic penalties without a cure period for a period of 5 years, at the completion of which any future offense shall count as a first offense.  The 5-year period shall restart if, during that period, an employer receives a subsequent notice of violation from the Department. [820 ILCS 112/30(c-10)]

2)         Upon investigating and finding a violation of Section 10(b-25) of the Act regarding a job posting or batch of job postings that are not active at the time the Department issues a notice of violation, the Department may impose a penalty as follows:

A)        For a first offense, a fine not to exceed $250 at the discretion of the Department. A first offense may be either a single job posting that violates Section 10(b-25) or multiple job postings that violate Section 10(b-25) and are identified at the same time by the Department. The Department shall have discretion to waive any civil penalty under this subsection (b)(2)(A).

B)        For a second offense, a fine not to exceed $2,500 at the discretion of the Department. A second offense is a single job posting that violates subsection (b-25) of Section 10. The Department shall have discretion to waive any civil penalty under this paragraph.

C)        For a third or subsequent offense, a fine not to exceed $10,000 at the discretion of the Department. A third or subsequent offense is a single job posting that violates Section 10(b-25). The Department shall have discretion to waive any civil penalty under this subsection (b)(2)(C). [820 ILCS 112/30(c-15)]

c)         Penalties for Other Violations of the Act

1)         Upon investigating and finding a violation of any Section of the Act or this Part that is not explicitly referenced in subsections (a) and (b) of this Section – including but not limited to Section 10(b), Section 10(b-5), Section 10(b-10), Section 10(b-20), Section 11, Section 20, and Section 40 of the Act – the Director may order and supervise payment of any damages owing to any employee or employees pursuant to Section 30(b) of the Act, payable to the employee or employees.

2)         An employer with fewer than 4 employees who violates any provision of this Act not explicitly referenced in subsections (a) and (b) of this Section is subject to a civil penalty ordered by the Director pursuant to Section 30 (c) of the Act as follows:

A)        A penalty not to exceed $500 for the first offense;

B)        A penalty not to exceed $2,500 for the second offense; and

C)        A penalty not to exceed $5,000 for the third or subsequent offense.

3)         An employer with between 4 and 99 employees who violates any provision of this Act not explicitly referenced in subsections (a) and (b) of this Section is subject to a civil penalty ordered by the Director pursuant to Section 30(c) of the Act as follows.

A)        A penalty not to exceed $2,500 for the first offense;

B)        A penalty not to exceed $3,000 for the second offense; and

C)        A penalty not to exceed $5,000 for the third or subsequent offense.

4)         An employer with 100 or more employees who violates any Section of this Act that is not explicitly referenced in subsections (a) and (b) of this Section, except for Section 11 of the Act, is subject to a civil penalty ordered by the Director pursuant to Section 30(c) of the Act not to exceed $10,000 per employee affected.

5)         An employer with 100 or more employees that is a business as defined under Section 11 and commits a violation of Section 11 shall be fined up to $10,000. [820 ILCS 112/30(c)]

6)         An employer or person who violates subsection (b), (b-5), (b-10), (b-20), or (c) of Section 10 of the Act is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $5,000 for each violation for each employee affected, payable to the Department. [820 ILCS 112/30(c)]

d)         Subsections (a), (b) and (c) shall not be construed as limiting the authority of the Director to seek all remedies authorized by the Act when, pursuant to Section 30(a) of the Act, the Department makes an assignment of the employee's claim for wages in violation of Sections 10 or 11 of the Act in trust for the assigning employee and brings any legal action necessary to collect the claim, whether at the request of an employee or on motion of the Director.

e)         When determining the amount of a penalty to be imposed in this Section, the Department shall consider the appropriateness of the penalty to the size of the business of the employer charged and the gravity of the violation, and may also consider other facts including but not limited to the employer's history of previous violations, and (if applicable) the number of employees affected.  A penalty may be recovered in a civil action brought by the Director in any circuit court. [820 ILCS 112/30(d)]

f)          Payment for unpaid wages and civil penalties may be made to the Department using the State Treasurer's E-Pay program or any successor program, certified checks, cashier's checks, or money orders, made payable to the individual employees or the Department of Labor.

g)         If a respondent does not comply within the time allowed after the Director's demand, the Director may bring a civil action against the respondent as provided for in Section 30 of the Act.

(Source:  Added at 50 Ill. Reg. 8918, effective June 18, 2026)