Illinois Employment Law Questions & Answers
Q: What are the qualifications for pro bono case?
Employee law help.
The willingness of a lawyer to handle a case for nothing. That's it.
Q: My employer (a DVM) has done some illegal things. If I quit because I’m uncomfortable, could I get unemployment?
Illegal things include allowing unlicensed people to do surgery and taking clinic medications for his personal use (schedule II drugs, i.e. Codeine)
Unemployment comes when you are fired, not when you leave. Good luck.
Q: Can an employers work comp insurance deny a surgery due to a previous work comp injury from another job 6 years ago?
6 years ago, i tore my ACL and required surgery. this was due to a work injury. fast forward to today, i was injured again at a new job and tore the same ACL and am now required to have another surgery. can my current employer try to deny my claim and surgery? this injury has always been disclosed... Read more »
They can try to deny the surgery, they are not likely to succeed. If you don't have a lawyer, get one ASAP to fight this for you.
Q: Could my parents sponsor me a green card when I am maintaining OPT status?
I am currently on OPT and will start my H1B this October 2019. My parents have recently gotten a green card and I am curious If they can sponsor my green card so I can stay in the US to get the procedure completed.
Any help would be highly appreciated and I would like to start the... Read more »
More information is needed, but it may help provided you are eligible to file for adjustment 'before' your H-1b expires or is terminated due to resignation or termination. I strongly recommend an appointment with a competent and experienced immigration attorney, who can review all of the concerns... Read more »
Q: What must I do to reestablish Cobra payment to an employer that ran out? I've Cobra by design until October 31, 2019.
I've been told about Cobra from the insurance card customer service number that the plan is until May 31, 2019, yet it was also said by the health insurance company that the plan is paid through March 2019. This affects my Special Enrollment Period, and I cannot get the owner to communicate back... Read more »
Contact the insurance company with your questions if you can't reach the employer.
Q: Can I cancel the job offer of type "At will" after accepting the offer for another better offer?
I am an international student on F1 visa. I have accepted a job offer from a company(in Illinois) for which I have signed documents such as employment contract and NDA contract. All these documents has clearly mentioned the nature of employment as "At Will" with no mention of notice period... Read more »
Since you did not mention a non-complete clause in the employment contract, I will assume that issue is no concern. Accordingly, unless you have received some valuable benefit(s) from the first company (such as a signing bonus, special training, valuable company equipment, laptop, etc.), there... Read more »
Q: My employer pays below minimum wage to be on call and does not pay for travel time.These are beyond scheduled work hours
Pay for travel time depends on whether you are commuting (which is not compensable) or traveling between job-sites or between your office or other base of operations and a job-site (which is typically compensable).
Q: I asked for a reasonable accommodation for a disability at work, was denied and later reprimanded is that discrimination
A new requirement was added to my responsibilities, I asked for an accommodation for my disability, was told no, and if I couldn’t complete it without an accommodation it would effect my employment... asked again 6 months later, was told no again and that “I just didn’t want to do it” and... Read more »
There is no way to answer your question effectively without an appointment (typically several hours long) reviewing the facts and any documents you can supply, investigating the medical condition that causes you to seek reasonable accommodation, etc.
Q: Last Wednesday I was told my job was eliminated. Is there any protection for older citizens?
I was told in November that we would have new phrases of development that I could help with. Now my boss said I do not have the knowledge. He asked me two weeks ago when I was planning on retiring. I have been with a company for 32 years and will be turning 64 in June.
Yes. If you are 40 years of age or older there's the possibility you are being discriminated on the basis of age. Make an appointment with an attorney who handles discrimination in employment cases as soon as possible. Bring as many pay stubs as you can gather for the past year, a copy of the... Read more »
Q: My husbands employer accidentally paid him after he was fired for six months and we didn't notice bc I work there.
We got a letter from the employer saying we needed to pay back $27k in two weeks. When we got his w-2's and mine , this pay was not reflected at all. We don't know what our right's are in this case. We don't pay much attention to our bank statements and just paid bills as usual and we don't have... Read more »
Whether you look at your bank statements or not is irrelevant. If your employer actually paid your husband $27,000 more than he was entitled, he will either have to give it back or will probably be sued by the employer.
Q: How long does it take for a written warning (corrective action) at your work place to expire in the state of Illinois.
I am on a corrective action aka Written Warning from 1/2019. However I was escalated to a Final Warning 4/2019. This written warning was used to escalate me to a Final Warning. This is for attendance. FYI in the months of March thru April I was only late once.
There is no law covering this. As a result, it all depends on the personnel policies of the employer, or on the terms of a union contract if one applies.
Q: What can I do if my income puts me just over the Obamacare cliff and I have to pay an extra 20k in taxes?
My income puts me just over the 400% threshold. If I made a little less I would not owe very much in taxes but now I owe 20k because I have to repay the full health insurance tax credit and I can’t afford it.
The first thing I would advise is to have your return prepared by a good CPA if you have not already done so. Make sure you use a good CPA and not a national chain. They may find some deductions that you were not aware you could take. After that if you still have a large balance due, contact a... Read more »
Q: If employee gives a 2 weeks notice, can the employer not accept it and have them leave at that time or at end of busines
The information attached to the question indicates you're in West Virginia. You should ask an attorney licensed there this question. I can give you the answer under Illinois law, but that doesn't mean the answer would be the same in West Virginia. I'd rather not give you advice you cannot rely on.
Q: Does a terminated employee have the right for full wage payment on the day of the termination?
Related to legislation: 820 ILCS 115/4-5. Wages include hourly rate, OT and bonuses.
If your question is: Does an employee get paid the full day's wage if he is fired before the end of the workday? The answer is that the employee gets paid for his time until he got fired.
If your question is: Does an employer have to give a fired employee his final paycheck on the day he is... Read more »
Q: Was let go from my employer of 13 years for having knowledge of a "slush fund" that was created long before I ever start
I was told at the time that money was missing from the fund and although they knew that I was not involved with the missing money, they let me (Operations Manager) & the Vice President go. I was told he was responsible. I was also told that they would give me a good recommendation and would in no... Read more »
You need to contact an attorney in your area who practices in the field of employment law (which differs from labor law that deals with union and managements situation. Bring every scrap (repeat: every scrap) of paper you've got documenting the situation from when it began until you see the... Read more »
Q: Can I sue for lost wages for providing primary care for a child that is not mine, biologically or legally?
To get wages, you have to be employed by someone with an agreed wage and conditions of employment.
Q: I had a verbal breach of contract when I signed an offer letter as an independent contractor, can I sue for this matter?
I signed an offer letter with a staffing agency to work as their account manager and the owner of the agency had multiple verbal agreements that he retracted after I signed the letter. I have evidences of witnesses, emails, calls and text proving this matter. Can I sue him for damages for... Read more »
You may be entitled to a remedy based on the facts provided, but the viability of recovering on such an action is dependent on specific facts that are not provided here, such as the details around the statements made, as well as the terms of the offer letter you reference. That being the case, I... Read more »
Q: hired for position and then the current employee decides not to leave. What recourse does new employee have?
Hired as general manager to train for position with current general manager until they left. Plan was to take over duties February 1, 2019. Now current manager decides not to leave and the new person has had hours cut and is not receiving hours/pay that was told would receive when hired. New... Read more »
Depending on additional details not provided, the incoming new employee general manager may have a breach of contract claim and/or a right to collect unemployment benefits, but otherwise, just because this is unfair does not mean it is illegal. Employers may change their plans for any reason as... Read more »
Q: Can a person be terminated for consensually dating a co-worker that is not a supervisor?
Simple answer is probably yes. Illinois is an "at will" employment jurisdiction, meaning your employer can fire you for any reason or no reason at all, so long as it is not discriminatory. But firing a person because the employer does not like the dating between employees is unlikely to be... Read more »
Q: When does the 33 percent fee change to 40 percent in a contingency agreement?
I am looking to get clarification regarding the following paragraph:
---"Contingency Agreement. This is a contingency agreement. The attorney's fee shall be: a. 33 and 1/3 percent before Trial; b. 40 percent if the case proceed to a Trial."---
Based on this, when would the 40%... Read more »
Your attorney would be in the best position to clarify this issue based upon the exact terms of your retainer agreement. The specific time or trigger you ask about is a valid concern and you should pose it to your attorney, so that both of you are clear as to the threshold at which the attorney fee... Read more »
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