Illinois Compiled Statutes
Chapter 820 - EMPLOYMENT
820 ILCS 70/ - Employee Credit Privacy Act.

(820 ILCS 70/1)
Sec. 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Employee Credit Privacy Act.

(Source: P.A. 96-1426, eff. 1-1-11.)
 
(820 ILCS 70/5)
Sec. 5. Definitions. As used in this Act:
"Credit history" means an individual's past borrowing and repaying behavior, including paying bills on time and managing debt and other financial obligations.
"Credit report" means any written or other communication of any information by a consumer reporting agency that bears on a consumer's creditworthiness, credit standing, credit capacity, or credit history.
"Employee" means an individual who receives compensation for performing services for an employer under an express or implied contract of hire.
"Employer" means an individual or entity that permits one or more individuals to work or that accepts applications for employment or is an agent of an employer. "Employer" does not, however, include:
"Financial information" means non-public information on the overall financial direction of an organization, including, but not limited to, company taxes or profit and loss reports.
"Marketable assets" means company property that is specially safeguarded from the public and to which access is only entrusted to managers and select other employees. For the purposes of this Act, marketable assets do not include the fixtures, furnishings, or equipment of an employer.
"Personal or confidential information" means sensitive information that a customer or client of the employing organization gives explicit authorization for the organization to obtain, process, and keep; that the employer entrusts only to managers and a select few employees; or that is stored in secure repositories not accessible by the public or low-level employees.
"State or national security information" means information only offered to select employees because it may jeopardize the security of the State or the nation if it were entrusted to the general public.
"Trade secrets" means sensitive information regarding a company's overall strategy or business plans. This does not include general proprietary company information such as handbooks, policies, or low-level strategies.

(Source: P.A. 102-538, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(820 ILCS 70/10)
Sec. 10. Employment based on credit history or credit report not permitted.
(a) Except as provided in this Section, an employer shall not do any of the following:
(b) The prohibition in subsection (a) of this Section does not prevent an inquiry or employment action if a satisfactory credit history is an established bona fide occupational requirement of a particular position or a particular group of an employer's employees. A satisfactory credit history is not a bona fide occupational requirement unless at least one of the following circumstances is present:
(Source: P.A. 96-1426, eff. 1-1-11.)
 
(820 ILCS 70/15)
Sec. 15. Retaliatory or discriminatory acts. A person shall not retaliate or discriminate against a person because the person has done or was about to do any of the following:
(Source: P.A. 96-1426, eff. 1-1-11.)
 
(820 ILCS 70/20)
Sec. 20. Waiver. An employer shall not require an applicant or employee to waive any right under this Act. An agreement by an applicant or employee to waive any right under this Act is invalid and unenforceable.

(Source: P.A. 96-1426, eff. 1-1-11.)
 
(820 ILCS 70/25)
Sec. 25. Remedies.
(a) A person who is injured by a violation of this Act may bring a civil action in circuit court to obtain injunctive relief or damages, or both.
(b) The court shall award costs and reasonable attorney's fees to a person who prevails as a plaintiff in an action authorized under subsection (a) of this Section.

(Source: P.A. 96-1426, eff. 1-1-11.)
 
(820 ILCS 70/30)
Sec. 30. Fair Credit Reporting Act. Nothing in this Act shall prohibit employers from conducting a thorough background investigation, which may include obtaining a report without information on credit history or an investigative report without information on credit history, or both, as permitted under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. This information shall be used for employment purposes only.

(Source: P.A. 96-1426, eff. 1-1-11.)

Structure Illinois Compiled Statutes