STATE RESOURCES

Illinois Department of Labor website

Personnel Record Review Act

Text of the Illinois Personnel Record Review Act is available here.

Federal laws, such as the Federal Insurance Contributions Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Equal Pay Act and the Civil Rights Act, impose recordkeeping duties on employers. Recordkeeping duties include creating, updating and preserving information.

This Employment Law Summary provides an overview of general recordkeeping requirements that apply to employers in Illinois. Additional requirements may exist for specific industries.

Payroll Records

Employers must maintain payroll records, for each employee, for at least five** years** from the time the records are made. Payroll records must include each employee's name, birthdate, Social Security number, occupation (or employment classification) and place of employment.

In addition, employers must maintain records of the following for each pay period:

• Each employee's wage rate;
• The number of hours each employee worked during the pay period;
• The beginning and ending date of the pay period;
• The gross amount of wages each employee earned during the pay period;
• An itemized list of deductions made from each employee's wages; and
• The net amount of wages paid to each employee.

Additional payroll requirements may apply for contractors who participate in government-funded projects.

Time Records

Every employer is required to keep a time book showing the names and addresses of all employees and the hours worked by each of them on each day. This may be any accurate record, such as a time clock card, time card, time book, time sheet or other suitable record. These records must be open to inspection at all reasonable hours by the state Director of Labor.

Child Labor

Employers with underage workers must keep a copy of each minor's employment certificate and any applicable waiver at the exact place and address where the minor is employed. Each of these records must be:

• Retained for at least three years , regardless of whether an employee has been terminated;
• Available for inspection and transcription by state agents; and
• Kept at the minors' places of employment.

Tipped Employees

Illinois law requires employers to keep records of the following for each tipped employee:

• An identifying symbol, letter or number for the employee's payroll record, indicating that the employee receives tips or gratuities as part of his or her wages;
• A report (generated and signed by the employee) of the tips or gratuities the employee earned during each workday;
• The employee's adjusted wage after reportable tips are calculated;
• The number of hours the tipped employee worked on "non-tip" occupations and the total daily or weekly wages paid to the employee for that time; and
• The number of hours the tipped employee worked on "tipped" occupations and the total daily or weekly wages paid to the employee for that time.

Equal Pay in Employment

The Illinois Equal Pay Act prohibits employers with four or more employees from discriminating against employees based on sex, which includes paying women and men different wages for similar work. This law also requires employers to keep records that are sufficient to prove compliance, such as records of every employee's compensation and their dates of hire, promotion and pay increases. These records must be maintained for at least five years.

Human Rights Act

Under the Illinois Human Rights Act, employers must maintain the following records for one year :

• Each employee's personnel file, including performance evaluations, attendance/tardiness records, and other employment and disciplinary actions;
• Applications for employment, resumes, and other documents, application materials and results from qualifying examinations; and
• Records for one year following any change in job descriptions, production standards and other records of job duties.

Contractors

Contractors and subcontractors must maintain records for all individuals performing services for them, regardless of how those individuals are classified, for a period of three years. Records that must be maintained for each individual performing services include, but are not limited to:

• The individuals' names, addresses, phone numbers, Social Security numbers, Individual Tax Identification Numbers and Federal Employer Identification Numbers;
• The type of work performed and the total number of days and hours worked;
• The method, frequency, and basis on which wages were paid or payments were made;
• All invoices, billing statements or other payment records, including the dates of payments, and any miscellaneous income paid or deductions made;
• Copies of all contracts, agreements, applications, and policy or employment manuals; and
• Any federal and state tax documents.

Employee Leave

Employers must keep records regarding employees who are on leave because they (or their family or household members) are victims of domestic or sexual violence. These records must be kept for at least three years and, for each employee on leave, must include:

• Payroll records;
• All dates leave is used;
• Copies of employee requests, if in writing, for leave;
• Copies of any written notices regarding leave given to employees;
• Any documents describing employee benefits or employer policies and practices regarding the taking of paid and unpaid leaves;
• Documentation of any dispute between the employer and the employee regarding designation of leave, including documentation of the reasons for the disagreement;
• Personnel records, employee qualifications for promotion, transfer, discharge or other disciplinary action, wage rates, skills testing certifications, job evaluations, job descriptions, merit systems, seniority systems, individual employment contracts, collective bargaining agreements, description of practices, or other matters that describe or explain the basis for any use of any type of paid and unpaid time off;
• Paid time off records indicating the amount of time earned for each year and the dates on which paid time off was taken or paid; and
• Records and documents relating to certifications, medical histories of employees or employees' family and household members, created for purposes of the act, shall be maintained in conformance with all state and federal laws, including, without limitation, all confidentiality requirements.

Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses

Employers must maintain OSHA 300 logs of all recordable occupational injuries and illnesses for and in each workplace. These logs must be retained for five years. Employers must also maintain a supplementary record of each recordable occupational injury and illness for each workplace.