Illinois Whistleblower Protections

“Employee” means any individual who is employed on a full-time, part-time, or contractual basis by an employer. “Employee” also includes, but is not limited to, a licensed physician who practices his or her profession, in whole or in part, at a hospital, nursing home, clinic, or any medical facility that is a health care facility funded, in whole or in part, by the State.

“Employer” means: an individual, sole proprietorship, partnership, firm, corporation, association, and any other entity that has one or more employees in this State, including a political subdivision of the State; a unit of local government; a school district, combination of school districts, or governing body of a joint agreement of any type formed by two or more school districts; a community college district, State college or university, or any State agency whose major function is providing educational services; any authority including a department, division, bureau, board, commission, or other agency of these entities; and any person acting within the scope of his or her authority express or implied on behalf of those entities in dealing with its employees.

• 10. Certain policies prohibited. An employer may not make, adopt, or enforce any rule, regulation, or policy preventing an employee from disclosing information to a government or law enforcement agency if the employee has reasonable cause to believe that the information discloses a violation of a State or federal law, rule, or regulation.
• 15. Retaliation for certain disclosures prohibited.

(a) An employer may not retaliate against an employee who discloses information in a court, an administrative hearing, or before a legislative commission or committee, or in any other proceeding, where the employee has reasonable cause to believe that the information discloses a violation of a State or federal law, rule, or regulation.

(b) An employer may not retaliate against an employee for disclosing information to a government or law enforcement agency, where the employee has reasonable cause to believe that the information discloses a violation of a State or federal law, rule, or regulation.

 

• 20. Retaliation for certain refusals prohibited. An employer may not retaliate against an employee for refusing to participate in an activity that would result in a violation of a State or federal law, rule, or regulation, including, but not limited to, violations of the Freedom of Information Act.
• 20.1. Other retaliation. Any other act or omission not otherwise specifically set forth in this Act, whether within or without the workplace, also constitutes retaliation by an employer under this Act if the act or omission would be materially adverse to a reasonable employee and is because of the employee disclosing or attempting to disclose public corruption or wrongdoing.

§ 20.2. Threatening retaliation. An employer may not threaten any employee with any act or omission if that act or omission would constitute retaliation against the employee under this Act.

• 25. Civil penalty. Violation of this Act is a Class A misdemeanor.

 

• 30. Damages. If an employer takes any action against an employee in violation of Section 15 or 20, the employee may bring a civil action against the employer for all relief necessary to make the employee whole, including but not limited to the following, as appropriate:

(1) reinstatement with the same seniority status that the employee would have had, but for the violation;

(2) back pay, with interest; and

(3) compensation for any damages sustained as a result of the violation, including litigation costs, expert witness fees, and reasonable attorney’s fees.

820 ILCS 130/2

 

• 2. This Act applies to the wages of laborers, mechanics and other workers employed in any public works, as hereinafter defined, by any public body and to anyone under contracts for public works. This includes any maintenance, repair, assembly, or disassembly work performed on equipment whether owned, leased, or rented.

 

As used in this Act, unless the context indicates otherwise:

“Public works” means all fixed works constructed or demolished by any public body, or paid for wholly or in part out of public funds.

 

820 ILCS 130/11b

 

• No person shall discharge, discipline, or in any other way discriminate against, or cause to be discharged, disciplined, or discriminated against, any employee or any authorized representative of employees by reason of the fact that the employee or representative has filed, instituted, or caused to be filed or instituted any proceeding under this Act, or has testified or is about to testify in any proceeding resulting from the administration or enforcement of this Act, or offers any evidence of any violation of this Act.

 

Any employee or a representative of employees who believes that he has been discharged, disciplined, or otherwise discriminated against by any person in violation of subsection (a) of this Section

With relation to Wages and Hours…§ 6. Any officer, agent or representative of any public body who wilfully violates, or willfully fails to comply with, any of the provisions of this Act, and any contractor or subcontractor, and any officer, employee, or agent thereof, who as such officer, employee, or agent, has a duty to create, keep, maintain, or produce any record or document required by this Act to be created, kept, maintained, or produced who willfully fails to create, keep, maintain, or produce such record or document as or when required by this Act, is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.

(b) Any employee or a representative of employees who believes that he has been discharged, disciplined, or otherwise discriminated against by any person in violation of subsection (a) of this Section may, within 30 days after the alleged violation occurs, apply to the Director of Labor for a review of the discharge, discipline, or alleged discrimination. A copy of the application shall be sent to the person who allegedly committed the violation, who shall be the respondent. Upon receipt of an application, the Director shall cause such investigation to be made as he or she deems appropriate. The investigation shall provide an opportunity for a public hearing at the request of any party to the review to enable the parties to present information relating to the alleged violation. The parties shall be given written notice of the time and place of the hearing at least 5 days before the hearing. Upon receiving the report of the investigation, the Director shall make findings of fact. If the Director finds that a violation did occur, he or she shall issue a decision incorporating his or her findings and requiring the party committing the violation to take such affirmative action to abate the violation as the Director deems appropriate, including, but not limited to, the rehiring or reinstatement of the employee or representative of employees to his or her former position and compensating him or her for the time he or she was unemployed. The party committing the violation shall also be liable to the Department of Labor for a penalty of $5,000 for each violation of this Section. If the Director finds that there was no violation, he or she shall issue an order denying the application. An order issued by the Director under this Section shall be subject to judicial review under the Administrative Review Law.

In any case involving the disclosure of information by an employee of the board of education or a local school council member, which the employee or member reasonably believes evidences (1) a violation of any law, rule, regulation, or policy, or (2) waste, fraud, mismanagement, abuse of authority, or a danger to the health or safety of students or the public, the identity of the employee or members may not be disclosed without the written consent of the employee or member during any investigation of the information or related matters.

In any case involving the disclosure of information by an employee of the board of education or a local school council member, which the employee or member reasonably believes evidences (1) a violation of any law, rule, regulation, or policy, or (2) waste, fraud, mismanagement, abuse of authority, or a danger to the health or safety of students or the public, the identity of the employee or members may not be disclosed without the written consent of the employee or member during any investigation of the information or related matters.

• No disciplinary action may be taken against any employee or local school council member for the disclosure of information by that employee or local school council member that evidences (1) a violation of any law, rule, regulation, or policy, or (2) waste, fraud, mismanagement, abuse of authority, or a danger to the health or safety of a student or the public. For the purposes of this Section, disciplinary action means any retaliatory action taken against an employee or local school council member by the board of education, employees of the board of education, local school councils, or exclusive bargaining representatives of employees, including, but not limited to, reprimand, suspension, discharge, demotion, involuntary transfer, harassment, or denial of promotion or voluntary transfer.

 

(c) A violation of this Section shall be a Class A misdemeanor.

740 ILCS 175/1

(b) Actions by private persons.

(1) A person may bring a civil action for a violation of Section 3 for the person and for the State. The action shall be brought in the name of the State. The action may be dismissed only if the court and the Attorney General give written consent to the dismissal and their reasons for consenting.

Reporting:

 

• 3. False claims.

(a) Liability for certain acts.

(1) In general, any person who:

(A) knowingly presents, or causes to be presented, a false or fraudulent claim for payment or approval;

(B) knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used, a false record or statement material to a false or fraudulent claim;

(C) conspires to commit a violation of subparagraph (A), (B), (D), (E), (F), or (G);

(D) has possession, custody, or control of property or money used, or to be used, by the State and knowingly delivers, or causes to be delivered, less than all the money or property;

(E) is authorized to make or deliver a document certifying receipt of property used, or to be used, by the State and, intending to defraud the State, makes or delivers the receipt without completely knowing that the information on the receipt is true;

(F) knowingly buys, or receives as a pledge of an obligation or debt, public property from an officer or employee of the State, or a member of the Guard, who lawfully may not sell or pledge property; or

(G) knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used, a false record or statement material to an obligation to pay or transmit money or property to the State, or knowingly conceals or knowingly and improperly avoids or decreases an obligation to pay or transmit money or property to the State,

 

is liable to the State for a civil penalty of not less than $5,500 and not more than $11,000, plus 3 times the amount of damages which the State sustains because of the act of that person. The penalties in this Section are intended to be remedial rather than punitive, and shall not preclude, nor be precluded by, a criminal prosecution for the same conduct.

(2) A person violating this subsection shall also be liable to the State for the costs of a civil action brought to recover any such penalty or damages.

(b) Definitions. For purposes of this Section:

(1) The terms “knowing” and “knowingly”:

(A) mean that a person, with respect to information:

(i) has actual knowledge of the information;

(ii) acts in deliberate ignorance of the truth or falsity of the information; or

(iii) acts in reckless disregard of the truth or falsity of the information, and

(B) require no proof of specific intent to defraud.

(2) The term “claim”:

(A) means any request or demand, whether under a contract or otherwise, for money or property and whether or not the State has title to the money or property, that

(i) is presented to an officer, employee, or agent of the State; or

(ii) is made to a contractor, grantee, or other recipient, if the money or property is to be spent or used on the State’s behalf or to advance a State program or interest, and if the State:

(I) provides or has provided any portion of the money or property requested or demanded; or

(II) will reimburse such contractor, grantee, or other recipient for any portion of the money or property which is requested or demanded; and

(B) does not include requests or demands for money or property that the State has paid to an individual as compensation for State employment or as an income subsidy with no restrictions on that individual’s use of the money or property.

(3) The term “obligation” means an established duty, whether or not fixed, arising from an express or implied contractual, grantor-grantee, or licensor-licensee relationship, from a fee-based or similar relationship, from statute or regulation, or from the retention of any overpayment.

(4) The term “material” means having a natural tendency to influence, or be capable of influencing, the payment or receipt of money or property.

(c) Exclusion. This Section does not apply to claims, records, or statements made under the Illinois Income Tax Act.

(g) Relief from retaliatory actions.

(1) In general, any employee, contractor, or agent shall be entitled to all relief necessary to make that employee, contractor, or agent whole, if that employee, contractor, or agent is discharged, demoted, suspended, threatened, harassed, or in any other manner discriminated against in the terms and conditions of employment because of lawful acts done by the employee, contractor, agent, or associated others in furtherance of an action under this Section or other efforts to stop one or more violations of this Act.

(2) Relief under paragraph (1) shall include reinstatement with the same seniority status that the employee, contractor, or agent would have had but for the discrimination, 2 times the amount of back pay, interest on the back pay, and compensation for any special damages sustained as a result of the discrimination, including litigation costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees. An action under this subsection (g) may be brought in the appropriate circuit court for the relief provided in this subsection (g).

(3) A civil action under this subsection may not be brought more than 3 years after the date when the retaliation occurred.

The City of Chicago § 1-21-010, et seq., § 1-22-010, et seq.

(b)

No  person  shall  take  any  retaliatory  action  against  an  employee because the employee does any of the following:

(1)

Discloses or threatens to disclose to a supervisor or to a public body an activity, policy, or practice of any officer, employee, or city contractor that the employee reasonably believes evidences:

(i)

an unlawful use of funds, unlawful use of authority, or other unlawful  conduct  that  poses  a  substantial  and  specific  danger  to  public  health  or safety by any officer, employee or city contractor; or

(ii)

any  other  violation  of  a  law,  rule,  or  regulation  by  any  officer, employee, or city contractor; or

(2)

Provides   information   to   or   testifies   before   any   public   body conducting an investigation, hearing, or inquiry into any activity, policy, or practice described in subsection (b)(1).

(c)

If any action is taken against an employee in violation of this section, the employee shall be entitled to injunctive relief, including:

(1)

reinstatement of the employee to either the same position held before the retaliatory action or to an equivalent position;

(2)

two times the amount of back pay; and

(3)

reinstatement of full fringe benefits and seniority rights

(b)

  No  person  shall  take  any  retaliatory  action  against  an  employee because the employee does any of the following:

(1)

 Discloses or threatens to disclose to a supervisor or to a public body an activity, policy, or practice of any officer, employee, or city contractor that the employee reasonably believes evidences:

(i)

an unlawful use of funds, unlawful use of authority, or other unlawful conduct  that  poses  a  substantial  and  specific  danger  to  public  health  or safety by any officer, employee or city contractor; or

(ii)

  any  other  violation  of  a  law,  rule,  or  regulation  by  any  officer, employee, or city contractor; or

(2)

   Provides   information   to   or   testifies   before   any   public   body conducting an investigation, hearing, or inquiry into any activity, policy, or practice described in subsection (b)(1)

(c)

If any action is taken against an employee in violation of this section, the employee shall be entitled to injunctive relief, including:

(1)

 reinstatement of the employee to either the same position held before the retaliatory action or to an equivalent position;

(2)

 two times the amount of back pay; and

(3)

 reinstatement of full fringe benefits and seniority rights.