Bill > HB2978

This bill creates the Family Neonatal Intensive Care Leave Act, which provides unpaid leave for employees with children in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Specifically, employees of employers with 16-50 employees can take up to 10 days of unpaid leave, while employees of employers with 51 or more employees can take up to 20 days of unpaid leave. The leave can be taken continuously or intermittently, with a minimum increment of 2 hours. Upon returning, employees must be reinstated to their former or an equivalent position without losing previously accrued benefits, and their health insurance must be maintained during the leave. The bill protects employees from adverse actions related to taking this leave and establishes enforcement mechanisms through the Department of Labor, which can investigate violations and impose civil penalties up to $5,000 per affected employee. Employees can file complaints within 60 days of a violation and can seek legal action if their rights are infringed. Additionally, 20% of collected penalties will be deposited into a new Neonatal Intensive Care Leave Fund to support the act's enforcement. The bill defines key terms such as "child" broadly to include biological, adopted, foster, and other children, and applies to both private and state employers.

Business and Industry, Government Affairs

https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/BillStatus.asp?DocNum=2978&GAID=18&DocTypeID=HB&SessionID=114&GA=104