Illinois’ Paid Leave for All Workers Act (PLAWA) requires employers to give employees at least 40 hours of paid leave per year that they can use for any reason, without explaining why. It isn’t a sick leave law in the usual sense: employees decide how to use the time, and employers can’t ask for a reason or documentation.
Chicago and Cook County have their own paid leave ordinances, and employees who work there are covered by those ordinances instead of the state law. Chicago’s requires more: 40 hours of paid leave plus 40 hours of paid sick leave. This guide covers the state rules, explains which law applies to which employees, and walks through the PTO and payout decisions employers face when the rules overlap. It reflects the Act, the Illinois Department of Labor’s PLAWA rules, and current Chicago and Cook County guidance.
Common Questions About Illinois Paid Leave
Who can take paid leave in Illinois?
Nearly all employees who work in Illinois, including part-time and seasonal employees. The main exclusions are employees covered by the federal Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act or Railway Labor Act, construction employees covered by a bona fide collective bargaining agreement, certain student employees, certain short-term employees of colleges and universities, and independent contractors. Domestic workers are covered even when they’re classified as independent contractors.
Which employers have to provide this leave?
All private employers and state and local government employers, regardless of size. Public school districts and park districts are excluded.
Employers covered by a local paid leave ordinance that was in effect on January 1, 2024, such as Chicago’s or Cook County’s, follow that ordinance for the employees it covers. Those employers still owe PLAWA leave to Illinois employees who aren’t covered by the local ordinance.
How much leave do employers need to provide?
Employees earn 1 hour of paid leave for every 40 hours worked, up to at least 40 hours in a 12-month period, starting on their first day. Employers can offer more. Overtime-exempt employees accrue as if they work 40 hours a week. If an exempt employee’s regular workweek is shorter, accrual follows the hours they actually work.
What can Illinois paid leave be used for?
Any reason. Employees don’t have to tell the employer why they’re taking leave, and employers can’t require documentation or certification to support it.
How does this relate to other types of leave?
An existing PTO or vacation policy satisfies PLAWA if it gives employees at least 40 hours per year that they can use for any reason, under conditions that meet the Act. Employers don’t need a separate PLAWA bank, but combining the two changes what happens at separation (see the payout question below). PLAWA leave can run at the same time as FMLA leave.
“The policy-design error I’d watch most closely is moving to a combined PTO bank without pricing the payout. Folding PLAWA leave into a generous PTO policy looks like a simplification, but it turns every unused hour into a wage obligation at separation. If payout cost matters, keep the 40 PLAWA hours in their own bank.” — Ryan Parker, Esq
Illinois’ Employee Sick Leave Act is a separate law. If an employer offers sick leave, employees can use it to care for a covered family member, and the employer can’t limit that use below what the employee would earn in six months.
Can employers limit how many hours of leave employees use in a year?
Yes. Employers don’t have to let employees use more than 40 hours of PLAWA leave in a 12-month period. Employers can also cap carryover at 40 hours. That means an employee’s balance can reach 80 hours, with 40 carried over and 40 newly earned, while their use is still capped at 40 in the year.
Can employers provide all the leave at once instead of letting it accrue?
Yes. Employers can frontload the full 40 hours at the start of each 12-month period. Employers that do aren’t required to allow carryover and can require employees to use the leave by the end of the period or lose it.
Employers that use a fixed 12-month period can prorate the frontloaded amount for employees hired partway through. Part-time employees can also receive a prorated amount based on their expected schedule. If a part-time employee works more than expected, they accrue additional leave at 1 hour per 40 hours worked, up to 40 hours. Either way, the employer must tell the employee in writing how many hours they’ve received, on or before their first day and before any change.
Do employers have to carry over unused leave?
Under an accrual policy, yes, and employers can cap carryover at 40 hours. Carryover isn’t required if the employer frontloads the full amount. Employers and employees can also agree in writing, each year, to pay out unused leave at the end of the 12-month period instead of carrying it over.
What is the smallest amount of leave an employee can use?
Employers can set a reasonable minimum increment of up to 2 hours per day. An employer that sets a 2-hour minimum can require an employee who leaves an hour early to use 2 hours. Employers can’t set a minimum larger than that, such as a half or full day.
How much do employers have to pay for paid leave?
Employees are paid their regular hourly rate for paid leave. Tipped and commissioned employees must receive at least the full minimum wage, or their agreed base hourly wage if it’s higher.
What notice do employers and employees need to provide?
Employers must display the Department of Labor’s PLAWA poster and tell frontloaded employees in writing how many hours they’ve received. See Illinois labor law poster requirements for the full posting list.
Employees can request leave orally or in writing. For foreseeable leave, employers can require no more than 7 calendar days’ notice. For unforeseeable leave, employees must give notice as soon as practicable, following the employer’s written procedure.
What verification can employers ask for?
None. Employers can’t require employees to give a reason for PLAWA leave or to provide any documentation.
Are employees’ jobs and benefits protected when they take this leave?
Yes. Employers can’t retaliate against employees for using or requesting leave, and must keep providing benefit coverage during leave. If an employee is rehired by the same employer within 12 months, their unused leave must be reinstated on their first day back.
Violations can be costly. Under the Department of Labor’s rules, an employee can recover a penalty of $500 to $1,000 in addition to other relief, and employers face a civil penalty of $2,500 per offense. Posting violations carry a $500 penalty for the first audit violation and $1,000 for each later one.
Do employers have to pay out unused leave at separation?
It depends on how the leave is structured. If PLAWA leave is tracked separately from the employer’s other paid leave, no payout is required. If it’s combined with a PTO or vacation bank, unused time must be paid out at separation under the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act, the same way vacation is. See the Illinois employee separation guide and checklist for other final pay rules.
Which Illinois Paid Leave Law Applies?
Work through these questions in order for each employee:
- Does the employee work at least 80 hours in any 120-day period within Chicago? If yes, the Chicago Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance applies.
- If not, does the employee spend at least half of their time working in a Cook County municipality that follows the county ordinance? If yes, the Cook County Paid Leave Ordinance applies. Some suburban municipalities have opted into the state law instead, so check the employee’s municipality.
- If neither applies, PLAWA covers the employee.
The three laws share the basic idea of paid leave for any reason, but they differ on amounts, waiting periods, carryover and payout. Chicago also adds a separate paid sick leave bank, and employers can require documentation for it only after 3 or more consecutive scheduled workdays.
| Rule | Illinois (PLAWA) | Cook County | Chicago |
| Minimum leave | 40 hours for any reason | 40 hours for any reason | 40 hours of paid leave for any reason, plus 40 hours of paid sick leave |
| Accrual rate | 1 hour per 40 worked | 1 hour per 40 worked | 1 hour per 35 worked, for each type |
| Use begins | 90 days after hire | 90 days after hire | Paid leave: 90 days. Paid sick leave: 30 days |
| Carryover | Employer may cap at 40 hours. None required if frontloaded | Cap can’t be less than 40 hours | Paid leave: up to 16 hours, none required if frontloaded. Paid sick leave: up to 80 hours |
| Payout at separation | Only if combined with PTO or vacation | Only if credited to a PTO or vacation bank, within 15 days | Paid leave: required for employers with 51 or more Chicago employees. Paid sick leave: not required |
Chicago updated its rules effective June 1, 2026, including how paid sick leave is calculated for non-exempt employees and when certification can be required. For city-level detail, see SixFifty’s guide to Chicago paid sick leave, the city’s paid leave fact sheet and the Cook County Paid Leave Ordinance page.
“The hardest part of Illinois paid leave isn’t the 40 hours. It’s that an employer with locations in Chicago, suburban Cook County and downstate can be working under three different laws at once. Before writing a policy, figure out which law covers each employee, because the answer changes how much leave you owe, what you can ask for, and what you pay out when someone leaves.” — Ryan Parker, Esq.
Structuring PTO in Illinois: Three Examples
A separate 40-hour paid leave bank
A downstate employer keeps its existing vacation policy and adds a separate 40-hour PLAWA bank. When an employee leaves with 20 unused PLAWA hours, the employer owes nothing for those hours, though unused vacation is still paid out as usual. The tradeoff is administrative: payroll tracks two balances, and employees need to understand which bank they’re drawing from.
One combined PTO bank
Another employer gives every employee 120 hours of PTO a year, usable for any reason, and doesn’t keep a separate PLAWA bank. That satisfies PLAWA with one balance to track. But because the PLAWA hours sit inside a PTO bank, all unused PTO is paid out at separation. An employee who leaves with 24 unused hours at $25 an hour is owed $600.
A Chicago employer with 60 employees in the city
A company with 60 Chicago employees must provide 40 hours of paid leave and 40 hours of paid sick leave. Because it has 51 or more covered employees in Chicago, it must pay out unused paid leave when an employee leaves. Unused paid sick leave doesn’t have to be paid out. If the company also has employees in Aurora and Peoria, those employees fall under PLAWA, and the company can manage their leave under a separate, simpler policy.
Illinois Paid Leave Implementation Checklist
- Sort every Illinois employee by the law that covers them, using the three questions above.
- Decide between a separate paid leave bank and a combined PTO bank. Combined is simpler to administer, but every unused hour becomes a payout at separation.
- Choose accrual or frontloading for each group. If you prorate frontloaded hours for new or part-time employees, put the amount in writing on or before their first day.
- Set your minimum increment (no more than 2 hours per day) and your notice rule for foreseeable leave (no more than 7 calendar days) in a written policy.
- Remove any requirement to give a reason or documentation for PLAWA leave and Chicago paid leave. Limit Chicago paid sick leave documentation to absences of 3 or more consecutive scheduled workdays.
- Set carryover caps that meet each law: up to 40 hours under PLAWA, at least 40 in Cook County, and 16 hours of paid leave and 80 hours of paid sick leave in Chicago.
- Post the required notices for each location, and give Chicago employees a statement of their leave balances each pay period.
- Update the handbook. See Illinois employee handbook requirements and SixFifty’s employee handbook builder for multi-state employers.
- Recheck the Chicago and Cook County rules each year. Both have issued updated rules since their ordinances took effect.
Employers often treat Chicago as the state law with a bigger number. It isn’t. Chicago splits leave into two banks with different rules: paid leave can be used for any reason and may have to be paid out, while paid sick leave has its own uses, a shorter waiting period and limited documentation rights. A single any-reason PTO bank can satisfy Chicago, but only if it’s built to meet both sets of rules. — Ryan Parker, Esq.
Simplify Illinois Paid Leave with SixFifty
Illinois paid leave gets complicated when state law, local ordinances and existing PTO policies overlap. SixFifty helps employers keep their policies aligned with state and local requirements, with less administrative work for HR. Schedule a free demo today, explore the paid leave policy creator, or see paid sick leave laws and requirements by state.
