A key Chicago city council committee advanced an ordinance at its meeting today directing city departments to study the environmental and energy impacts of data centers within Chicago....more
CHICAGO — CTA Launches AI Surveillance to Stop Gun Violence at Transit Stations- The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) recently rolled out an artificial intelligence (AI) surveillance tool to detect guns at stations, a move...more
BALTIMORE — City Council Investigates DPW Working Conditions -Baltimore City Council members criticized Department of Public Works (DPW) officials over unsafe workplace conditions following the death of a sanitation worker,...more
On July 1, 2024, the Chicago Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance (PLO or the “Ordinance”) took effect. We previously reported on the Ordinance when it was announced in November 2023 noting that, as written, it...more
Effective July 1, 2024, the Chicago Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance (“Ordinance”) will entitle eligible employees to accrue up to 40 hours of Paid Leave and up to 40 hours of Paid Sick Leave in a 12-month...more
On July 1, 2024, Chicago will take its first step towards eliminating the tip credit. That day, the tip credit amount an employer can claim decreases from 40% to 32% of the applicable minimum wage. Every year thereafter, on...more
The Chicago Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance is set to take effect on July 1, 2024, and the City’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection has published its long-awaited interpretive rules....more
Chicago employers have only a few weeks left to comply with new paid leave rules impacting workers in the city. The ordinance was supposed to take effect last December, but the Chicago City Council amended and delayed it...more
The Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) Office of Labor Standards (COLS) recently posted updates to its website regarding minimum wage obligations, paid leave and paid sick and safe leave,...more
On July 1, 2024, three ordinances go into effect that will alter critical employment laws for Cook County and Chicago businesses. These three ordinances are: (1) the Chicago Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance,...more
Earlier this month, the Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection published the final rules supporting Chicago’s new Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance. Both the ordinance and the rules go...more
On April 30, 2024, the Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) published the final rules interpreting the Chicago Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance (the “Ordinance”) which is set...more
Landlords owning Chicago properties in most circumstances are now required to provide tenants with the new summary of the Residential Landlord Tenant Ordinance (“RLTO”) posted by the city in March. The summary can be reached...more
While environmental justice (EJ) concerns continued to drive policymaking in early 2024, EJ efforts increasingly faced headwinds coming from various and sometimes unexpected directions. Below, we will summarize recent...more
Effective July 1, 2024, employers will need to comply with new paid leave requirements that apply to all Chicago employees (including those who work from home from Chicago). The Chicago City Council passed the Paid Leave and...more
On January 18, 2024, Notice Postingthe City of Chicago Office of Labor Standards (OLS) issued proposed rules, FAQs, and a Flyer for its New Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance (Ordinance) effective July 1, 2024....more
CHICAGO — Chicago Rideshare Drivers Looking for Safety Solutions- Chicago Gig Alliance organizer Lori Simmons is leading the charge in demanding city officials take action in response to a rash of recent rideshare driver...more
Illinois state and local legislatures kept busy in 2023 with the enactment of numerous new labor and employment laws, including significant changes to paid and sick leave for employees and new protections for temporary...more
Executive Summary: In January 2023, the Illinois Legislature passed the Paid Leave for All Workers Act (PLAW Act). The PLAW Act specifically exempted the City of Chicago and certain municipalities in Cook County because they...more
Executive Summary: In response to the State of Illinois enacting the Paid Leave for All Workers Act (“PLAW Act”), which requires 40 hours of paid leave to be provided to employees that can be used for any reason, but exempts...more
With the 31 December 2023 effective date for the Chicago Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance (Ordinance) rapidly approaching, the Chicago City Council passed an amendment on 14 December 2023 (Amendment), which...more
The City of Chicago recently enacted a new Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave ordinance. Though initially slated to go into effect December 31, 2023, on December 13, 2023, the Chicago City Council voted to amend the...more
State and local governments have weighed in at increasing frequency in past years. While some environmental issues are global in scope, local governments are progressively engaged on issues affecting climate, waste disposal,...more
The Chicago City Council has passed an amendment to the new Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance that delays its effective date from December 31, 2023, to July 1, 2024. The new effective date grants...more
The Chicago City Council voted on December 13, 2023, to amend the effective date of the Chicago Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance from December 31, 2023, to July 1, 2024....more