IL · state labor law, 2026
Illinois labor laws: minimum wage, overtime, leave, final pay and breaks
Illinois gives almost every worker paid time off with no questions asked, while Chicago and Cook County run their own wage and leave rules.
Illinois and federal rules checked on official sources on · Checked by Radif Partners · How we calculate
- Minimum wage now
- $15.00/h
- statewide
- Next change
- none announced
- checked October 11, 2026
- Tipped cash wage
- $9.00/h
- tips must make up the rest
- Overtime
- 40 h/week
- state law
- Paid sick leave
- 1 h per 40 h
- cap 40 h a year
- Paid family leave
- no program
- FMLA is unpaid
Illinois is one of the few states where paid leave comes with no reason attached: since January 1, 2024 the Paid Leave for All Workers Act lets employees earn one hour for every 40 hours worked, up to 40 hours a year, and the employer may not ask why the time is taken. The statewide minimum wage is $15.00 an hour for workers 18 and older, unchanged from 2025, which comes to $31,200 for a 40-hour year. Chicago sets $17.05 for employers with four or more employees and Cook County $15.40, both since July 1, 2026. Tipped staff can be paid $9.00 in cash if tips fill the gap. Time and a half applies after 40 hours a week, and the exempt salary line follows the federal $684 a week. Final pay, including earned vacation, is due on the next regularly scheduled payday.
Gross pay for this week in Illinois
$600
Time and a half after 40 hours in a week
| Minimum wage in Illinois now | $15 an hour |
| Your rate against it | At or above the minimum |
| Overtime: none this week | $0 |
| Paid sick leave earned in a year | 40 hours (cap reached) |
| Breaks owed in a 8-hour shift | 20 min meal |
| Final paycheck if fired | by the next regularly scheduled payday |
| Unused vacation at the end | Accrued vacation must be paid out |
| Paid family leave | No state program |
40 hours a week at $15. State rule applied. Minimum wage, overtime and leave rules have exceptions by employer size and industry. How this is calculated.
Time off you never have to explain
Most state sick leave laws list the reasons a worker may use the hours: an illness, a doctor visit, a sick child. The Illinois act drops that list. An employee can take the leave to rest, to handle a car repair or to attend a school play, and the employer is barred from requiring a basis for the request. Accrual starts on the first day of work, use can be delayed until day 90, and the act covers every employer in the state, non-profits included. A barista on 30 hours a week builds about 39 hours over a year; a full-time warehouse clerk reaches the 40-hour ceiling, since 2,080 hours worked would generate more than the cap allows. An employer may instead frontload the full amount at the start of the year.
The hours are not cashed out when the job ends, unless the employer has folded them into a general vacation or PTO bank. That detail matters for the final check, covered further down.
Sick leave you earn in a year
Hours earned in a year
39
| Rate | 1 hour per 40 hours worked |
| Cap (typical employer) | 40 hours |
| Weeks to earn one 8-hour day | 10.7 |
Chicago and Cook County write their own rules
Inside Chicago, the city ordinance replaces the state act. Workers there earn one hour of paid leave plus one hour of paid sick leave for every 35 hours worked, so two separate balances build at once. Cook County has its own paid leave ordinance as well, and its minimum wage of $15.40 applies only in towns that have not opted out. Chicago raises its rate every July 1 by inflation, capped at 2.5%, and its tipped cash wage stands at $12.96, well above the statewide $9.00. A full-time cashier paid the Chicago minimum rather than the state rate collects $4,264 more over a year. The Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection publishes the city figures.
City minimum wage against the state rate
Flagstaff (AZ), per hour
$18.35
| Arizona state rate | $15.15 |
| Difference per hour | $3.20 |
| Difference over a year | $6,656 |
| Year at the city rate | $38,168 |
A long week and a short lunch
Illinois counts overtime by the week only, after 40 hours, at one and a half times the regular rate; there is no daily trigger. A forklift operator earning $21 an hour who works five 9-hour days is owed 5 overtime hours, worth $158, for a gross week of $998. The meal rule is specific: a 20-minute break for every 7.5 hours worked, given no later than five hours into the shift, plus a second 20 minutes on shifts of 12 hours or more. A nurse aide clocking in at 7 a.m. must therefore be offered a meal by noon. The state meal rule says nothing about short rest breaks.
Lower rates written into the law
Workers under 18 may be paid $13.00 as long as they work fewer than 650 hours in a calendar year; past that, the full adult figure applies. Tipped employees receive 60% of the minimum in cash, and tips are expected to carry each hour to the full rate. Licenses that let some employers pay workers with disabilities below the minimum wage are being phased out: the Illinois Department of Labor will stop issuing and recognizing them on December 31, 2029.
Vacation is wages at the end of the job
Earned vacation under a contract, agreement or policy counts as final compensation, and a former employee can claim its monetary value from the employer. Bonuses and commissions owed are also part of the last check, which is due on the next regular payday whether you resign or are dismissed. The Department of Labor vacation FAQ sets out that claim, and the PTO payout comparison shows how far Illinois sits from states that leave the matter to the handbook.
Illinois employment rules at a glance, 2026
Minimum wage schedule
| From | Who it covers | Rate | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 1, 2026 | Statewide (workers 18 and older) | $15.00 | $15.00 since January 1, 2025; unchanged in 2026 |
Workers covered by both laws get the higher rate. Youth under 18 working fewer than 650 hours per calendar year: $13.00 Read the Illinois rule.
Cities and counties with their own minimum wage
| Place | Rate | Since | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago | $17.05 | July 1, 2026 | ordinance page |
| Cook County | $15.40 | July 1, 2026 | ordinance page |
Overtime
Time and a half after 40 hours in a week. The salary test for exempt employees is the federal $684 a week. source
Sick leave and family leave
Paid sick leave: 1 hour of paid leave for every 40 hours worked, usable for any reason (Paid Leave for All Workers Act) (up to 40 hours per 12-month period (or frontloaded); usable after 90 days of employment. Chicago and Cook County have their own ordinances instead (Chicago: 1 h paid leave + 1 h paid sick leave per 35 h worked)), all employers, including non-profits. Leave can be taken for any reason; no reason may be required. Not paid out at separation unless it is part of a vacation/PTO bank. source
No state paid family leave insurance: the federal FMLA gives eligible workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave.
Final paycheck and unused vacation
Fired or laid off: by the next regularly scheduled payday. Quitting: by the next regularly scheduled payday. Vacation: earned vacation under a contract, agreement or policy must be paid at separation (Section 300.520); PLAWA paid leave is not, unless it is part of a vacation/PTO bank. source vacation rule
Meal and rest breaks
Meal: 20-minute meal break for every 7.5 hours worked, no later than 5 hours after the start of the shift; an additional 20 minutes for shifts of 12 hours or longer. No paid rest break is required for adults. source
Unions and dismissal
Illinois has no right-to-work law, so a union contract may require a fee from the workers it covers. Employment is at will: either side may end it at any time, except for an illegal reason such as discrimination or retaliation, or against a contract.
Also worth knowing in Illinois
- The Paid Leave for All Workers Act (in force since January 1, 2024) gives up to 40 hours of paid leave a year that can be used for any reason, not only illness; employers cannot require a reason. source
- Workers in Chicago and Cook County are covered by local paid leave ordinances instead of the state act; Chicago grants 1 hour of paid leave plus 1 hour of paid sick leave per 35 hours worked. source
- Illinois will stop recognizing licenses to pay workers with disabilities less than the minimum wage on December 31, 2029. source