Public Act 104-0259
 
HB2978 EnrolledLRB104 08355 SPS 18406 b

    AN ACT concerning employment.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Family 
Neonatal Intensive Care Leave Act.
 
    Section 5. Definitions. As used in this Act:
    "Child" means an employee's son or daughter who is a 
biological, adopted, or foster child, a stepchild, a legal 
ward, or a child of a person standing in loco parentis.
    "Department" means the Department of Labor.
    "Employee" has the meaning ascribed to that term in 
Section 2 of the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act and 
also includes any employee of the State of Illinois.
    "Employer" has the meaning ascribed to that term in 
Section 2 of the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act and 
also includes the State of Illinois.
    "Neonatal intensive care unit" or "NICU" means a special 
care unit that provides medical treatment to premature and 
critically ill infants.
 
    Section 10. Neonatal intensive care family leave. 
    (a) An employee of an employer with 16 or more employees 
and no more than 50 employees shall be entitled to use a 
maximum of 10 days of unpaid neonatal intensive care leave 
while any child of the employee is a patient in a neonatal 
intensive care unit. An employee of an employer with 51 or more 
employees shall be entitled to use 20 days of unpaid neonatal 
intensive care leave while a child of the employee is a patient 
in a neonatal intensive care unit. Leave may be taken 
continually or intermittently at the employee's selection. An 
employer may require that leave be taken in minimum increments 
of not less than 2 hours in duration.
    (b) An employee who is entitled to leave under the Family 
and Medical Leave Act and takes leave under this Act shall be 
granted, upon completion of and in addition to any leave taken 
under the Family and Medical Leave Act, any leave available 
under this Act. An employee shall be entitled to leave for the 
maximum number of days specified in subsection (a) or the 
length of time the employee's child was a patient in a neonatal 
intensive care unit, whichever is less. An employer shall not 
require that an employee use any paid leave available to the 
employee for any reason instead of leave the employee is 
entitled to under this Act. An employee who is entitled to take 
paid or unpaid leave, including family, medical, sick, annual, 
personal, or similar leave, from employment, under federal, 
State, or local law, a collective bargaining agreement, or an 
employment benefits program or plan, may elect to substitute 
any period of leave for an equivalent period of leave provided 
under this Act.
    (c) Upon the conclusion of leave taken under this Act, an 
employee shall be reinstated to his or her former position or a 
substantially equivalent one with no loss of benefits held or 
accrued prior to taking leave. During the period of leave, any 
health insurance benefits shall be maintained by an employer 
as if an employee had not taken leave. An employer shall not 
require an employee who uses unpaid neonatal intensive care 
leave to provide a replacement worker.
    (d) If an employee takes unpaid neonatal intensive care 
leave under this Section, an employer may require reasonable 
verification of the employee's child's length of stay in a 
neonatal intensive care unit. As part of a reasonable 
verification, an employer shall not request any confidential 
information protected by the Health Insurance Portability and 
Accountability Act of 1996 or other law.
 
    Section 15. Unlawful employer practices.
    (a) It is unlawful for any employer to take any adverse 
action against an employee because the employee:
        (1) exercises rights or attempts to exercise rights 
    under this Act;
        (2) opposes practices which such employee believes to 
    be in violation of this Act; or
        (3) supports the exercise of rights of another under 
    this Act.
    (b) Exercising rights under this Act includes, but is not 
limited to, filing an action or instituting or causing to be 
instituted any proceeding under or related to this Act, 
providing or agreeing to provide any information in connection 
with any inquiry or proceeding relating to any right provided 
under this Act, or testifying to or agreeing to testify in any 
inquiry or proceeding relating to any right provided under 
this Act.
 
    Section 20. Department responsibilities.
    (a) The Department shall administer and enforce this Act 
and adopt rules under the Illinois Administrative Procedure 
Act for the purpose of this Act. The Department shall have the 
powers and the parties shall have the rights provided in the 
Illinois Administrative Procedure Act for contested cases. The 
Department shall have the power to conduct investigations in 
connection with the administration and enforcement of this 
Act, including the power to conduct depositions and discovery 
and to issue subpoenas. If the Department finds cause to 
believe that this Act has been violated, the Department shall 
notify the parties in writing and the matter shall be referred 
to an administrative law judge to schedule a formal hearing in 
accordance with hearing procedures established by rule.
    (b) The Department is authorized to impose civil penalties 
prescribed in Section 25 in administrative proceedings that 
comply with the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act and to 
supervise the payment of the unpaid wages and damages owing to 
the employee or employees under this Act. The Department may 
bring any legal action necessary to recover the amount of 
unpaid wages, damages, and penalties, and the employer shall 
be required to pay the costs. Any sums recovered by the 
Department on behalf of an employee under this Act shall be 
paid to the employee or employees affected. However, 20% of 
any penalty collected from the employer for a violation of 
this Act shall be deposited into the Neonatal Intensive Care 
Leave Fund, a special fund created in the State treasury, and 
used for the enforcement of this Act.
    (c) The Attorney General may bring an action to enforce 
the collection of any civil penalty imposed under this Act.
 
    Section 25. Enforcement. 
    (a) An employee who believes his or her rights under this 
Act or any rule adopted under this Act have been violated may, 
within 60 days after the date of the last event constituting 
the alleged violation for which the action is brought, file a 
complaint with the Department or file a civil action.
    (b) An employer that violates any provision of this Act or 
any rule adopted under this Act is subject to a civil penalty 
for each employee affected not to exceed $5,000. Any 
continuous period of time that any child of an employee is a 
patient in a neonatal intensive care unit, during which time 
the employer is found to have violated the employee's rights 
under this Act, shall constitute a single violation.
    (c) A civil action may be brought in the circuit court by 
an employee to enforce this Act. The circuit court may enjoin 
any act or practice that violates or may violate this Act and 
may order any other equitable relief that is necessary and 
appropriate to redress the violation or to enforce the Act.
 
    Section 90. The State Finance Act is amended by adding 
Section 5.1030 as follows:
 
    (30 ILCS 105/5.1030 new)
    Sec. 5.1030. The Neonatal Intensive Care Leave Fund.