New Reimbursement Policy Obligations for Illinois Employers Effective January 1, 2019

Effective January 1, 2019, by law, employers in Illinois will be required to reimburse employees for work-related expenses. Specifically, employers will be required to reimburse expenses or losses that employees incurred in the scope of their employment that are directly related to the services that the employee performs. Click here to read the law.  

This new law should not be overlooked, as employees will have the right to sue for reimbursement of these expenses up to ten (10) years after the expenses are incurred. Further, the law requires employers to cover the employee's attorneys' fees when violations are found. 

Employers can protect themselves by developing reasonable reimbursement policies that identify: the specific expenses authorized to be reimbursed, the classification of employee(s) authorized to incur the expenses, the caps on those expenses and the process for reimbursement. After developing a policy, employers must disseminate the policy to ensure employees are aware of "who" and "what" is reimbursable.

In order to protect against possible claims, employers should review their current reimbursement policies and update them accordingly in writing before December 31, 2018.

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