A new wave of Illinois employment laws requires covered Illinois employers to provide unpaid leave for parents with a child in neonatal care, paid leave for military funeral honors, and paid break time for nursing mothers.

Neonatal Intensive Care Leave

Effective June 1, 2026, employers with at least sixteen employees are required to provide unpaid leave to employees to use while their child is a patient in a neonatal intensive care unit.

Under the Family Neonatal Intensive Care Leave Act, employees of employers with 16 to 50 employees may use up to 10 days of leave, while employees of employers with at least 51 employees may use up to 20 days of leave. This leave may be taken continuously or intermittently, though employers may require that leave be taken in at least two-hour increments.

The bill requires employers to maintain an employee’s health insurance benefits while he or she is on leave and to reinstate the employee to his or her former position or a substantially equivalent position once the leave ends.

Employers are prohibited from taking any adverse action against an employee exercising his or her right to neonatal intensive care leave. Employers who violate the Act are subject to a civil penalty up to $5,000 per employee affected. 

Military Funeral Honors Leave

As of August 1, 2025 (Public Act 104-0078), Illinois employers with 51 employees or more are required to provide certain covered employees with up to eight hours of paid leave per month, or up to 40 hours of paid leave per calendar year to perform “military funeral honors details.”  Employers must pay employees their regular rate of pay for such leave.  Employees may take military funeral honors leave in lieu of any other available leave they may have.

The statute defines “military funeral honors details” as an honor guard detail consisting of at least two members of the U.S. Armed forces, one of whom is from the deceased veteran’s service branch, with the remainder of the detail consisting of members of the armed forces or members of an authorized provider.

An employee may take military funeral honors leave if the employee is trained to participate in a funeral honors detail and (i) is a retired or active member of the armed forces, including a member of the reserve component of the armed forces, or (ii) is an authorized provider, or a registered member of a nonprofit or other organization that is an authorized provider.

Employees taking military funeral honors leave must provide reasonable notice, as practicable, prior to taking such leave.  Employers may request confirmation from the relevant veterans organization that dispatched the employee to the funeral honors detail or the employee can provide an official notice of their participation in the detail.  

Independent living facilities, assisted living facilities, nursing home facilities or other similar care facilities may deny military funeral honors leave if granting leave would result in reduced staffing levels that are below the established minimum standard or would impair safe and efficient operation for the facility.

Nursing Mothers Breaktime

The Nursing Mothers in the Workplace Act (the “Act”) requires employers to compensate nursing mothers for breaks taken to express breast milk.

Under the amended Act, as of January 1, 2026, employers now must compensate nursing mothers for such break time at the mother’s regular rate of compensation. Employers also may not require the employee to use paid leave during such break time or otherwise reduce the employee’s compensation during the break time. 

We will continue to monitor any new employment obligations under Illinois law.

Posted in Paid Family Leave
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Photo of Edward Young Edward Young

Edward “Eddie” C. Young is a senior counsel in the Labor & Employment Law Department and a member of the following Firm practice groups: Restrictive Covenants & Trade Secrets; Discrimination, Harassment & Title VII; and Whistleblowing & Retaliation.

Eddie represents employers in all…

Edward “Eddie” C. Young is a senior counsel in the Labor & Employment Law Department and a member of the following Firm practice groups: Restrictive Covenants & Trade Secrets; Discrimination, Harassment & Title VII; and Whistleblowing & Retaliation.

Eddie represents employers in all aspects of employment law, with a concentration on litigating complex employment disputes of all types before federal and state courts throughout the country, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, state and local human rights commissions and arbitral tribunals (e.g., FINRA and AAA).  In particular, Eddie has successfully litigated employment-related disputes alleging breach of non-compete agreements, theft of trade secrets, discrimination, sexual harassment, whistleblower retaliation, wage and hour violations, including employee misclassification claims, breach of contract, defamation, fraud and other business-related torts.  Eddie has obtained a world-wide injunction to enforce a client’s non-competition restriction on a former executive, successfully defended a client through summary judgment and appeal against retaliation claims brought by a former General Counsel, represented Fortune 500 companies in defense of high-profile harassment claims associated with the #metoo movement, and provided representation to several professional sports leagues.  He also has significant appellate experience, including successfully representing clients before the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the First, Second and Seventh Circuits, as well as before the United States Supreme Court.  Eddie often draws on his litigation experience to help clients avoid the courtroom by effectuating positive change in the workplace through impactful training, counseling and developing robust employment policies.

Working in a wide range of industries, Eddie represented clients in food services, financial services, medical devices, telecommunications, higher education, sports, retail, real estate and others.

Eddie has been recognized as “One to Watch” by Best Lawyers in America since 2021 and as a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers since 2017. He also regularly advises clients, writes and speaks on cutting-edge legal issues, including the use of Artificial Intelligence in the workplace, and legal issues arising from the collection and use of employee biometric information.

Eddie maintains an active pro bono practice, including on-going representation of a certified class of approximately 65,000 visually disabled Chicagoans in litigation challenging the City’s lack of accessible pedestrian crosswalks.  Eddie is also a member of the Firm’s Pro-Bono Committee and is a three-time recipient of the Firm’s “Golden Gavel” award for his significant pro bono contributions.

Prior to joining Proskauer, Eddie was a cum laude graduate from Loyola University Chicago School of Law. He also obtained a Master’s Degree in Human Resources and Industrial Relations from Loyola University Chicago Graduate School of Business. He began his practice at a national management-side employment law firm, and has also worked in the corporate human resources department of a national tax consulting firm and as a Fellow with the Illinois Human Rights Commission.

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Photo of Raymond Arroyo Raymond Arroyo

Raymond Arroyo is an associate in the Labor Department and a member of the Employment Litigation & Arbitration Group.

During his time at Proskauer, Raymond has focused on a wide range of employment matters, including employment discrimination litigation, labor/management relations, and policies, handbooks…

Raymond Arroyo is an associate in the Labor Department and a member of the Employment Litigation & Arbitration Group.

During his time at Proskauer, Raymond has focused on a wide range of employment matters, including employment discrimination litigation, labor/management relations, and policies, handbooks and training, among others. Raymond has gained experience across a wide variety of industries including financial services, educational institutions, and sports.

Raymond earned his J.D. from Columbia Law School. While at Columbia, Raymond worked at the Center for Public Research and Leadership as a graduate assistant, providing consulting and strategic advice to educational institutions and organizations.  Raymond was also a staff editor for the Columbia Journal of Race and Law.

Prior to his legal career, Raymond was a Teach for America corps member and taught middle school in New York City.

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Brenna McLean

As a labor & employment associate, Brenna McLean represents employers in workplace law matters, including discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wage and hour violations. Brenna also routinely advises clients on a variety of employment practices, including employee handbooks and policies.

Prior to joining Proskauer…

As a labor & employment associate, Brenna McLean represents employers in workplace law matters, including discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wage and hour violations. Brenna also routinely advises clients on a variety of employment practices, including employee handbooks and policies.

Prior to joining Proskauer, Brenna began her career at a national employment law firm, where she completed a legal secondment at a major airline. Most recently, Brenna worked at an international videogame company conducting internal employee investigations.

Brenna graduated from Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, cum laude, where she served as Articles Editor for The Northwestern Law Review and externed for the Honorable Marvin E. Aspen in the Northern District of Illinois. While in law school, Brenna also earned the Public Service Star Award for completing over 200 hours of public service during her second and third years.

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