Illinois Employment Legal Questions

It is unusal that they would not want to address this problem, especially if it is hurting the bottom line of sales.  But unless the manager's actions are based on some illegal motive (e.g., he is targetting only African Americans, or only females, etc), there is no legal action that can be taken.  If an employee suffers some type of physical or emotional injury by these actions, then the company becomes liable for not doing anything to protect the employees.  That becomes a personal injury action at that point... Read More

Unless the bank's real reason for not wanting to rehire you is based on some type of illegal discrimination (e.g., age, race, etc.), then they can refuse to rehire you if they truly believe too many of the accounts you brought in were "low quality".  They would not need to have warned you about this in the past.  If they are simply using this as a pretext for another illegal reason (such as age or race, etc.), then you may be able to take action.  You would need to review your case with an employment attorney to confirm there was something to pursue... Read More

This sounds like some higher up person saw that you were pregnant and overruled the original decision to hire you.  If there was in fact a danger for you to the job being pregnant (exposure to X-ray machines, heavy lifting as an essential job requirment, etc), then there may be a possible excuse to not retain you, at least while you were pregnant.  But this does not seem to be the real reason why you were let go.  You should meet with an attorney to review this in more detail to confirm some additional information so you can pursue a claim... Read More

There have been improper actions among the things you describe. It would take a face-to-face consultation, however, for an attorney to get a full background of what occurred, evaluate the time frame in which the events occurred, note the actions you took at various times to document your concerns with the right personnel, evaluate whether your complaints were met with action or inaction, and many other considerations. It may be that a pattern is being established that should be well documented.... Read More

This sounds serious and it sounds like you should have sought workers' compensation advice from the beginning. I am not sure if you were misdirected, but you should be working with counsel as soon as possible. Your claim should include coverage of medical expenses, payment for lost time and, later, an award for the injury. This needs to be fully and properly evaluated.... Read More

This is not a matter to handle on your own. You have a workers' compensation claim /against the company /and should be represented. Occasionally, there are other claims you may be able to pursue, but the starting point is that you were injured in the course of your employment. Your injury is extremely serious and will impact you forever. Do not make the mistake of handling possible claims on your own.... Read More

If your maternity leave was covered under the FMLA, and you returned within the 12 week period allowed under the FMLA, then the university would have to return you to your prior position.  There are a few exceptions to this such as if your position would have been eliminated even if you never took any leave.  You would qualify for FMLA if you worked there at least 12 months and worked full time or at least 1250 hours during the last 12 month period.  I recommend that you meet with an attorney who can explore your facts in more detail.  ... Read More

It seems that you have a few issues here as well as a very angry employer.  First, as the employer felt the need to ask you to sign a new consent for a background check, which you refused to do, the employer is clearly on notice that the old consent was effectively revoked.  Second, there was no legitimate need for the employer to perform this background check when you were no longer working for them.  The performance of the background check could therefore easily be argued as a violation of your rights.  Third, as there seems to be inaccurate information due to the identify theft problem you had in the past, the employer would violate the law by publishing erroneous information assuming you have or immediately notify him about the false information and why it is false.  It also appears that as the old employer is threatening to convey this information to your new employer, they are acting maliciously.  You should immediately consult with an attorney who can send a letter to the old employer threatening legal action for doing the background check without authorization and making it clear that information on the background check is false and based on an identity theft issue you had in the past.  If the employer then sends the information to your new employer, you can take legal action against the old employer should you lose your new job.... Read More

From your description of events, there are many potential legal violations committed by your prior employer.  This ranges from violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act, to violation of the Illinois Wage Payment Act, to intentional infliction of emotional distress.  I would suggest contacting an attorney to review your case in more detail.... Read More

This would be deemed a retaliatory discharge.  The law prohibits an employer from terminating you for reporting possible crimes that occur at work to the police.  You should speak to an attorney quickly.  You should also make a written request to HR for a copy of your personnel file.... Read More

While the employer cannot claim that you "quit" in this situation, he can terminate you without any reason at all.  What you need to do is send an email or a letter by regular and certified mail stating exactly what you note in your question and make it clear that you did not quit and explain to him that he should not claim to anyone else that you quit.  You can further note in your letter or email that you still stand ready to work. In the meantime, if you do not hear anything from the employer within 2 days (if you contact them by email) or 5 days (if by letter), you can file for unemployment.  The employer may claim you quit but under the facts you state, you will be able to obtain unemployment... Read More

If you have been a full time worker for the last 12 months (working at least 1250 hours), and your employer employs at least 50 employees, then your migraine sitation could possibly be construed as a "serious health condition" under the FMLA which would entitle you to intermittent leave under the FMLA.  You should probably check first with your doctor to see if he/she considers this condition serious enough to qualify, and then meet with an attorney to review your facts in more detail to see if you meet the conditions for leave under the FMLA... Read More

The employer cannot take any action in retaliation for your having been on FMLA.  The only way for the employer to justify its actions against you in the situation you describe is if he can establish that you had performance issues that necessitated this change.  Otherwise, the actions may be retaliatory and this would allow you to take legal action.  You should speak to an attorney to determine the best way to approach this.... Read More

If you are represented by a union, the first person you should speak with is the union rep, or the Business Agent (BA) if the union rep does not give you a clear answer.  Typically, transfers and assignments are covered by union seniority, but only up to a point.  There is often some exception in the union contract allowing business reasons to control over seniority, but there must be a valid business reason.  The questions that you or your union rep should ask of the company is why you are being transferred and why you are being replaced by a new worker.  If the reason sound suspect, there may be a possibility that age discrimination is a factor if you are over 40 years old... Read More

The main issues when challenging an alleged lay off or job elimination that be based on discrimination, is whether the job elimination was a reasonable business decision, and even if it is, the next question is whether it can be argued that you should not have been the one to be targetted.  A number of factors may be relevant to these questions including whether anyone else was affected by the lay off or job elimination, who is now performing your job duties, and what the ages of those people are. Your description of facts makes it worthwhile for you to speak to an attorney to explore this further.... Read More

It is not, by itself, illegal to impose different discipline for the same type of violations committed by other employees.  If, however, the reason for treating you harsher in comparison to others is based on discrimination (race, religion, national origin, etc) or retaliation for certain types of complaints you may have made, then there may be a violation of some laws.  Further, if you are protected by a union, then the union can easily grieve your discipline as being out of line with how others are disciplined for similar offenses. You should meet with an attorney to explore this in more detail... Read More

If you are doing actual work for the chiropractor, as opposed to only training that might be required under the laws pertaining to your profession, then you should be getting paid for all of that time.  It might also depend on what the custom is in your profession.  You should definitely speak to an attorney to determine if you should pursue this matter further... Read More

As you have not worked at the company for at least 12 months, you are not entitled to FMLA leave (you would also have to be full time, and there would have to be at least 50 employees working for this company to qualify for FMLA).  Therefore, the only remedy or rule that  might apply would depend on whether other employees who worked for a similar period of time were allowed to take a longer leave for some medical reason, while you were denied the same benefit.  If that is the case, you may have a claim for either gender or pregancy discrimination. You should speak to any attorney to see if you have other options based on any additional facts in your case... Read More

The only issue would be if the employer can prove that it did not receive notice until December 14 or later.  On occasion IDES makes an error on mailing out notices, but that does not happen too often.  Nevertheless, you need to respond to any appeal and argue it is untimely, adn explain why the decision was correct (which can basically be repeating the reasons in the decision.  Do not take things for granted. ... Read More

It is usually a good idea to have an attorney handle the appeal.  But this depends on whether there is a realistic possibility that you could win the appeal.  If you were drinking at work while on the job, then there may not be much that can be done.  If you worked at the restaurant, then even drinking after work could be a grounds for termination if you allegedly became intoxicated at the restaurant.  You should meet with an attorney to discuss this further.  The attorney can evaluate the case and determine if it is worth retaining the attorney or not.... Read More

Your set of facts suggests 2 possible legal issues.  If, as you imply, this is based on the many years of your service, meaning your age, then an age discrimination claim may exist.  If the manager is trying to set you up for problems that she actually caused, you would have a potential claim against  that manager.  Regardless of which claim may apply, you will have to provide specific evidence to show that you do not have any of the performance problems they note in your PIP.  If you have strong evidence that shows the manager was the cause of the problems for which you are being blamed, you may want to bring that up before you are terminated, not after. I suggest you meet with an attorney to review your case in more detail.  In the meantime, you need to prepare a detail response to the PIP and alleged performance issues they are trying to pin on you... Read More