Just before midnight yesterday, the Appellate Court issued its decision on the appeal of the February 4, 2022 TRO enjoining the Governor from enforcing certain COVID-19 mitigation measures including universal masking. With...more
2/18/2022
/ Appeals ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Educational Institutions ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
Mootness ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Risk Mitigation ,
School Policies ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
TRO ,
Workplace Safety
154 school districts, Governor Pritzker, IDPH and ISBE have been sued in an attempt to abolish school district masking and quarantine requirements. The complaint was filed on October 20, 2021 in Macoupin County Circuit Court....more
On September 22, 2020, President Donald Trump issued a controversial Executive Order “combat[ting] offensive and anti-American race and sex stereotyping and scapegoating” by federal contractors and recipients of federal grant...more
9/28/2020
/ Bias ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Colleges ,
Deregulation ,
Diversity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employee Training ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
OFCCP ,
Race Relations ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sexual Stereotyping ,
Title VII ,
Trump Administration ,
Universities
On July 23, 2020, we issued an alert informing you that the CDC updated its guidance on returning from home isolation, shortening the required time that an individual who has tested positive for or is suspected of having...more
Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, which held that a State’s decision to bar aid to religious schools violates the Free Exercise Clause of the U.S. Constitution....more
7/13/2020
/ Compelling Governmental Interest ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Espinoza v Montana Department of Revenue ,
Establishment Clause ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
No Aid Clause ,
Private Schools ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Schools ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
Scholarships ,
SCOTUS ,
State Aid ,
State Constitutions ,
Strict Scrutiny Standard ,
Tuition
On April 13, 2020, the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission (IWCC) issued an emergency rule creating a rebuttable presumption that first responders and other essential workers identified in Governor Pritzker’s March 20...more
Over the past two weeks, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released a new poster, safety tips specific to retail workers, and updated guidance for employers that have mandatory respirator programs....more
As we previously reported, on March 27, 2020, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) and the Governor issued several resource documents that address changes to the remote learning landscape in Illinois schools during...more
In a recent decision, the Illinois Human Rights Commission (IHRC) ruled that Illinois schools cannot limit transgender students’ unfettered access to the locker rooms that correspond to their gender identities. The decision...more
8/8/2019
/ Educational Institutions ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
Human Rights ,
LGBTQ ,
School Restrooms ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
State and Local Government ,
Students ,
Transgender
On June 5, the Governor signed Public Act 101-0010 which, among other things, deleted the TRS 3% excess salary cap and revived the 6% cap. ...more
On the heels of a movement fueled by the Illinois teachers unions, the Illinois House and Senate passed a bill, Senate Bill 1814, which includes a House Amendment that will repeal the current 3% salary cap for Teachers...more
The Supreme Court announced yesterday that it will address whether federal civil rights laws protect gay, lesbian, and transgender employees from discrimination. The Court will hear three cases—from New York, Georgia, and...more
4/23/2019
/ Altitude Express Inc v Zarda ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Certiorari ,
Civil Rights Act ,
EEOC v RG & GR Harris Funeral Homes ,
Employment Litigation ,
Gender Identity ,
Hiring & Firing ,
LGBTQ ,
SCOTUS ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
Last month, the Cook County Commission on Human Rights issued final interpretive and procedural rules governing the Cook County Minimum Wage Ordinance, which becomes effective July 1, 2017....more
Setting the stage for the U.S. Supreme Court to tackle the issue, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals (which covers Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin) yesterday overturned decades of precedent and held that Title VII of the...more
As we previously reported, in May, 2016, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced a final rule changing the way it collects, and employers report, workplace injury and illness data. Under these new...more
12/14/2016
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Drug Testing ,
Electronic Filing ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
OSHA ,
Popular ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Trump Administration ,
Workplace Injury ,
Workplace Safety
In an opinion issued yesterday, U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Jeffrey Gilbert decided that Township High School District 211 “balanced the interests of all its students when it decided to permit transgender students to...more
On Wednesday, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan filed suit against fast-food franchisor Jimmy John’s and several Jimmy John’s franchisees operating in Illinois claiming that Jimmy John’s and its franchises unlawfully...more
Claiming that it will “nudge” employers to focus on safety, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued a final rule which updates the way it collects, and employers report, workplace injury and...more
Last month, the Indiana Supreme Court unanimously upheld the Indiana Right to Work Law, rejecting a union’s claim that the state statute violates the Indiana Constitution. The Indiana Supreme Court’s decision comes roughly...more
Signaling that it is considering taking up the issue of what accommodations employers must provide for pregnant employees, the Supreme Court last month requested the Solicitor General’s opinion as to whether to accept the...more
The Supreme Court’s 2013-2014 term opened yesterday. In this term, the Court will hear and decide a number of cases affecting employers, including two key cases focusing on labor-management relations. ...more
10/8/2013
/ ADEA ,
Affirmative Action ,
Ballot Measures ,
Canning v NLRB ,
Collective Bargaining ,
College Admissions ,
Colleges ,
Equal Protection ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
NLRB ,
Sandifer v U.S. Steel Corp ,
SCOTUS ,
Unions ,
Universities