Day and Temporary Labor Service Agency FAQ

No, Illinois law specifies that staffing agencies (and their agents) are not allowed to charge for rides. (820 ILCS 175/20)

Ask if you can arrange your own transportation. If the person insists that you must pay them for transportation, take down their name, job site, staffing agency and call the hotline at 877-314-7052.

No, Illinois law prevents employers from designating a particular financial institution, bank, or currency exchange. (820 ILCS 115/4)

Ask if you can have your check so that you can cash it at an institution of your choosing. If the person refuses to give you your check, take down their name, the job site, the currency exchange or check cashing location, and the staffing agency and call the hotline at 877-314-7052. 

Under Illinois law, third-party clients are required to provide day or temporary laborers with a Verification Form that contains the date, the day or temporary laborer's name, the work location, and the hours worked on that day. IDOL provides a template Verification Form, but employers are not required to use that specific form. The Illinois Department of Labor would deem a third-party client to be in compliance with the Work Verification requirement specified in Section 30(a-1) of the Act, if the third-party client implements a time keeping system that allows a laborer to print daily a record of the time that such laborer clocked in and out that day, or, in the alternative, to print a daily and on demand summary of the total hours such laborer worked that day, and assuming the requisite employee identification is provided.

Yes, if a day or temporary laborer works for more than 90 calendar days in a 12-month period at a worksite for a third-party client employer, then the laborer should receive at the least the same wages and benefits as an equivalent employee directly hired by the third-party employer at the same worksite. This includes the same automatic benefits as direct-hire employees, and the same opportunity to opt-in for the other voluntary benefits. The day or temporary labor service agency may offer the benefits to the laborers according to the same terms and conditions as direct hire employees are subject to by the third-party client, such as requiring payment of health insurance premiums.  If the third-party client does not have a comparable directly hired employee, the day or temporary laborer must receive no less than the rate of pay and equivalent benefits of the lowest paid directly hired employee of the company with the closest level of seniority. A day and temporary labor service agency may pay the hourly cash equivalent of the actual cost benefits instead of the benefits required under Section 42. The 90-day count starts from August 5, 2023, the day after the effective date of the amendments, and includes only days worked by a day or temporary laborer for the third-party client within a 12-month period, not simply the total duration of the contract or assignment. The days worked may be intermittent and do not have to be consecutive. There is no minimum number of hours that work must be performed in order for a workday to be counted towards the 90-day total. The employer should count any calendar days on which the laborer shows up to the client’s work site to work.

Example: A day and temporary laborer is assigned to work for a third-party client over the course of a four-month contract from September 1, 2023 through December 31, 2023 (122 days). The laborer starts work on September 1 and normally works Monday through Friday, with some days off, bringing their total days worked for the client to 81 as of December 31. The laborer will need to work nine more days for the third-party client before September 1, 2024, in order to be eligible for the same pay and benefits as an equivalent, directly hired employee. 

The proposed Rules define “benefits” in this way: "Benefits" means health care, vision, dental, life insurance, retirement, leave (paid and unpaid), other similar employee benefits, and other employee benefits as required by State and federal law.  

The day and temporary labor service agency is responsible for providing the benefits (or ensuring that the benefits are provided by the client). If both the agency and the third-party client provide some benefits, the two parties (client/agency) should communicate with and consult one another to address any overlap and ensure compliance with the Act. The Department cannot advise or guide day or temporary labor agencies or third-party clients about determining comparable benefits for laborers. Agencies and/or third-party clients should consult the statute for more information.

Section 42 of the Act (new) says “Upon request, a third-party client to which a day or laborer has been assigned for more than 90 calendar days shall be obligated to timely provide the day and temporary labor service agency with all necessary information related to job duties, pay, and benefits of directly hired employees necessary for the day and temporary labor service agency to comply with this section. The failure by a third-party client to provide any of the information required under this section shall constitute a notice violation by the third-party client under Section 95.”

Section 95 of the Act contains provisions for enforcement via private right of action. 

If a day and temporary labor service agency and a third-party client decide to modify their contracts to accommodate or govern this requirement, please be aware that such contractual provisions are not under the purview of IDOL.

Laborers and interested parties can file a complaint with IDOL regarding missing wages or other violations of the Day and Temporary Labor Services Act. An interested party is an organization concerned with public or worker safety laws, wage and hour requirements, and/or other related legal requirements.

Contact Information

·        Day Labor Services Information: (312) 793-8889

·        Day Labor HOTLINE: (877) 314-7052 (toll free)

·        Email: DOL.DayLabor@illinois.gov

The Day and Temporary Labor Services Act:

• Creates duties and responsibilities of day and temporary labor agencies and third-party clients,
• Creates registration fees for agencies,
• Prohibits excessive deductions for meal and equipment charges,
• Regulates the transportation of laborers,
• Creates penalties for violations of the law and
• Requires third-party clients that contract with day or temporary labor agencies to verify that they are registered with the Illinois Department of Labor (IDOL) or face monetary penalties.

Recordkeeping Requirements (Section 12)

Day and temporary labor service agencies must keep and maintain for a period of three years detailed records relating to every day laborer's work, including the name address and specific work location to which the day laborer was assigned, the date sent, the type of work performed, the number of hours worked, the hourly rate of pay, the name and title of the individuals responsible for the transaction, copies of all contracts and invoices with third-party clients, copies of all employment notices required to be provided to laborers, all deductions made by third-party clients or agencies for food, equipment, tax or social security withholdings, verification of the actual costs of equipment and meals provided to day laborers, all records pertaining to safety hazard training and disclosure, all records used to determine compensation and benefits, records related to any notice of a labor dispute provided to a day and temporary labor service agency, and any additional information required by the Department of Labor. All of these records must be open to inspection by the Department of Labor during normal business hours. In addition, records relating to an individual laborer and any hours billed to third-party clients for his or her labor must be available for review or copying by the laborer within 5 days following a written request.

Transportation Regulations (Section 20)

Day and temporary labor agencies, third-party clients (and their contractors or agents) are prohibited from charging laborers for transportation from the agency to the worksite. Agencies, third-party clients (and their contractors or agents) are responsible for the conduct and performance of persons providing transportation and drivers must have a valid and appropriate motor vehicle license, proof of financial responsibility as well as seats and safety belts for every passenger. Any violations of these requirements discovered by the Department shall be forwarded to appropriate law enforcement or regulatory agencies.

Placement Fee Restrictions (Section 40)

Temporary staffing agencies often charge third-party clients a placement fee or buyout fee if the third-party client hires a day or temporary laborer directly. Illinois law limits the placement fees that agencies may charge to a third-party client to the equivalent of the total daily commission rate the agency would have received over a 60-day period, reduced by the equivalent of the daily commission rate the agency received for each day the laborer has performed work for the agency in the preceding 12 months. These fee restrictions do not apply to the placement of skilled labor, where the agency performs an advanced application process, a screening process and a job interview. See Sec. 40 of the Act, regarding Work Restrictions, for more information.

Third-party Client Responsibilities (Sections 30 and 85)

Third-party clients who contract for the services of day and temporary labor agency must verify that the day and temporary labor agency is registered with the IDOL before entering into a contract with them and again on March 1 and September 1 of each year. The third-party client may request a list of registered agencies from the Department or rely on the list of registered agencies maintained on the Department's website. A third-party client that contracts with a day and temporary labor agency that is not registered is subject to a penalty of $500 for each day they contract with an unregistered agency. For laborers contracted to work a single day, third-party clients must provide laborers with a work verification form at the end of the workday that contains the laborers' name, work location, date and hours worked that day. A third-party client that fails to provide laborers with a work verification form may be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $100 and not more than $1,500 for each violation found by the Department. Such civil penalty shall increase to not less than $500 and not more than $7,500 for a second or subsequent violation. Each violation for each day or temporary laborer and for each day the violation continues shall constitute a separate and distinct violation.

Third-party clients that contract with day and temporary service agencies for the services of day laborers share all legal responsibility and liability for the payment of wages under the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act and the Minimum Wage Law.

Third-party clients are responsible for disclosing to their contracted day and temporary labor service agencies all information necessary for the agencies to comply with equal pay and benefit requirements, safety training requirements, and labor dispute disclosure requirements.

Willful Violations (Section 75)

Any person or entity that willfully violates any provision of the Act or the Department's rules is liable for penalties up to double the statutory amounts. If willful violations result in underpayments to laborers, the person or entity is liable to the Department for 20% of the total underpaid amounts and liable to the laborer for 2% of the underpaid amounts for each month these amounts remain unpaid.

Private Right of Action (Section 95)

Any laborer aggrieved by a violation of this Act or the Department's rules may file suit in the circuit court of the county where the alleged offense occurred or where the laborer resides, without regard to exhaustion of any administrative remedies provided by the Act. A laborer must file suit within three years of the final date of employment by the day and temporary labor service agency or third-party client. A laborer whose rights have been violated is entitled to lost wages, compensation and benefits, plus an equal amount in liquidated damages for wage and hour violations; compensatory damages and up to $500 for health and safety or notice violations; all appropriate legal and equitable relief for unlawful retaliation; and attorney's fees and costs for all violations.

Interested parties may file suit in court only after filing a complaint with the Department and subsequently receiving a “right-to-sue” letter from the Department, or after 180 days if the Department takes no action.