Aquino law takes aim at unfair labor practices

SPRINGFIELD - When an unfair labor practice charge is filed, workers rely on Illinois' labor oversight boards to take timely action to protect their rights and help resolve issues related to unfair or unlawful practices.

To ensure workers do not wait in limbo to find out the future of their livelihood, State Senator Omar Aquino led a measure to streamline the resolution process at worksites involved in these proceedings.

"The fight for workers' rights has been a long, ongoing battle. It's the reason we have paid time off, a work week and weekend, parental leave and safety in the workplace," said Aquino (D-Chicago). "Most employers engage with labor unions lawfully, but when bad actors find new ways to twist the law and get around these hard-fought protections, we need to take action to cement these rights with a strong foundation that can continue to be built upon."

The Illinois Labor Relations Act lays out the rights public sector employees are entitled to in Illinois, including the right to form, join or assist a labor organization without fear of penalty, discrimination or retaliation. When a public employer or labor organization interferes with employees engaging in protected activities under the ILRA, the employee, union or employer can file unfair labor practice charges with the labor board overseeing their sector. In recent years, labor unions representing public sector workers have seen wait times as long as 400 days on their unfair labor practice claims.

To ensure there is publicly available data on how long it takes to resolve cases, Aquino worked with the AFL-CIO on the new law calling on the Illinois Labor Relations Board and the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board to expedite their consideration of these complaints and report the timeline annually to the governor and General Assembly. To speed up the resolution process, the law requires both boards to adopt and follow an expedited schedule for the processing of unfair labor practice charges.

House Bill 5324 goes into effect Jan. 1.