Illinois Workplace Harassment Laws: Annual Training, 2-Year Deadline

Workplace harassment is a civil rights violation in Illinois under the Illinois Human Rights Act. Section 2-102(D) (775 ILCS 5/2-102(D)) makes it a violation for any employer, employee or agent of an employer to engage in sexual harassment, and since January 1, 2026 section 2-102(A) also makes it a violation for an employer to engage in harassment on the basis of race, religion, disability, sexual orientation and the other traits listed in the new definition in section 2-101(E-1).

For sexual harassment the Act covers any person employing one or more employees (775 ILCS 5/2-101(B)(1)(b)). A charge with the Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR) is due within 2 years after the alleged violation (775 ILCS 5/7A-102(A)(1)), and every employer with employees working in Illinois must provide sexual harassment prevention training at least once a year to all employees (775 ILCS 5/2-109(C)). For other states, see workplace harassment laws by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-20. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Illinois state law on workplace harassment by employers, supervisors, coworkers and nonemployees under the Illinois Human Rights Act (775 ILCS 5), chiefly sections 1-103, 2-101, 2-102, 2-108, 2-109, 2-110, 6-101 and 7A-102, with the Workplace Transparency Act (820 ILCS 96), the Workplace Violence Prevention Act (820 ILCS 275) and the Hotel and Casino Employee Safety Act (820 ILCS 325). It does not cover wrongful firing or the full charge and lawsuit procedure (see Illinois wrongful termination), damages estimates, criminal harassment or stalking, harassment outside employment, city and county ordinances, or federal-employee procedure.

Illinois harassment rules at a glance

What the Illinois Human Rights Act prohibits

Illinois has two harassment definitions in section 2-101, and section 2-102 makes each one a civil rights violation in employment. Both definitions apply "strictly in the context of" Article 2, the employment article.

Sexual harassment: sections 2-101(E) and 2-102(D)

Section 2-101(E) defines sexual harassment as:

"any unwelcome sexual advances or requests for sexual favors or any conduct of a sexual nature when (1) submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual's employment, (2) submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual, or (3) such conduct has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with an individual's work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment. For purposes of this definition, the phrase 'working environment' is not limited to a physical location an employee is assigned to perform his or her duties." (775 ILCS 5/2-101(E))

Clauses (1) and (2) describe quid pro quo harassment, where submission to the conduct becomes a condition of the job or the basis for employment decisions. Clause (3) describes a hostile working environment. Section 2-102(D) then makes it a civil rights violation "for any employer, employee, agent of any employer, employment agency or labor organization to engage in sexual harassment."

Harassment on other protected traits: sections 2-101(E-1) and 2-102(A)

Public Act 103-804, effective January 1, 2026, added a general harassment definition:

"'Harassment' means any unwelcome conduct on the basis of an individual's actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, sex, marital status, order of protection status, disability, military status, sexual orientation, pregnancy, unfavorable discharge from military service, citizenship status, work authorization status, or family responsibilities that has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with the individual's work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment." (775 ILCS 5/2-101(E-1))

Section 2-102(A) makes it a civil rights violation "for any employer to refuse to hire, to segregate, to engage in harassment as defined in subsection (E-1) of Section 2-101," or to take the other listed employment actions on the basis of unlawful discrimination, citizenship status, work authorization status or family responsibilities.

The standard in the statute

Both definitions turn on conduct that has "the purpose or effect of substantially interfering" with work performance or "creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment." Neither definition uses the phrase "severe or pervasive." How Illinois tribunals and courts apply the statutory words to particular conduct is case law that this page does not summarize.

Which Illinois employers are covered

Section 2-101(B)(1) defines "employer" to include, among others:

"(a) Any person employing one or more employees within Illinois during 20 or more calendar weeks within the calendar year of or preceding the alleged violation; (b) Any person employing one or more employees when a complainant alleges civil rights violation due to unlawful discrimination based upon his or her physical or mental disability unrelated to ability, pregnancy, or sexual harassment; (c) The State and any political subdivision, municipal corporation or other governmental unit or agency, without regard to the number of employees;" (775 ILCS 5/2-101(B)(1))

Parties to a public contract and joint apprenticeship or training committees are also employers "without regard to the number of employees" (2-101(B)(1)(d), (e)). The definition excludes a place of worship, religious corporation, association, educational institution or society with respect to the employment of individuals of a particular religion to perform work connected with its activities (2-101(B)(2)), and "employee" does not include "elected public officials or the members of their immediate personal staffs" (2-101(A)(2)(c)).

The practical difference is the 20-week test. A sexual harassment claim reaches a private employer with a single employee, with no 20-week requirement. For harassment on another trait, the general rule in paragraph (a) applies: one or more employees within Illinois during 20 or more calendar weeks in the year of or before the violation. Paragraph (b) also drops the 20-week test for claims alleging discrimination based on disability or pregnancy.

Who is protected

• Employees, apprentices and applicants for apprenticeships: section 2-101(A)(1) defines "employee" to include "any individual performing services for remuneration within this State for an employer," an apprentice, and an applicant for any apprenticeship.
• Unpaid interns: "For purposes of subsection (D) of Section 2-102 of this Act, 'employee' also includes an unpaid intern" (2-101(A)). That extension covers the sexual harassment clause.
• Nonemployees: section 2-102(D-5) makes it a violation for any employer, employee, agent of an employer, employment agency or labor organization "to engage in sexual harassment of nonemployees in the workplace," and section 2-102(A-10) makes it a violation for an employer, employment agency or labor organization "to engage in harassment of nonemployees in the workplace." A "nonemployee" is "a person who is not otherwise an employee of the employer and is directly performing services for the employer pursuant to a contract with that employer," and the term "includes contractors and consultants."

Protected traits

The Act's general definition of "unlawful discrimination" in section 1-103 covers discrimination because of a person's "actual or perceived: race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, sex, marital status, order of protection status, disability, military status, sexual orientation, pregnancy, reproductive health decisions, or unfavorable discharge from military service." Section 2-102(A) adds citizenship status, work authorization status and family responsibilities for employment.

Section 1-103 also shapes several of those traits. It defines age as the age of a person "who is at least 40 years old" (with a different range for training and apprenticeship programs), provides that race "includes traits associated with race, including, but not limited to, hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists," and defines sexual orientation to include "gender-related identity, whether or not traditionally associated with the person's designated sex at birth." Other sections of Article 2 separately restrict an employer's use of an arrest record (2-103) or a conviction record (2-103.1), bar restrictions that prohibit an employee from speaking a native language in communications unrelated to the employee's duties (2-102(A-5)), and bar conditions of employment that would require a person to forgo a sincerely held religious practice, including religious attire, clothing or facial hair, unless the employer demonstrates it cannot reasonably accommodate the practice without undue hardship; the same subsection does not prohibit a dress code or grooming policy that restricts attire, clothing or facial hair to maintain workplace safety or food sanitation (2-102(E-5)).

The harassment definition in 2-101(E-1) has its own list: actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, sex, marital status, order of protection status, disability, military status, sexual orientation, pregnancy, unfavorable discharge from military service, citizenship status, work authorization status and family responsibilities. It does not name reproductive health decisions, which appear in the 1-103 definition of unlawful discrimination. Both lists protect perceived as well as actual traits.

Employer responsibility and individual liability

The statute states when an employer answers for harassment by people other than its managers and supervisors:

• Harassment on other traits: "An employer is responsible for harassment by the employer's nonmanagerial and nonsupervisory employees only if the employer becomes aware of the conduct and fails to take reasonable corrective measures" (2-102(A)).
• Sexual harassment: "an employer shall be responsible for sexual harassment of the employer's employees by nonemployees or nonmanagerial and nonsupervisory employees only if the employer becomes aware of the conduct and fails to take reasonable corrective measures" (2-102(D)).

For harassment by supervisors, the Illinois Supreme Court addressed the rule in Sangamon County Sheriff's Dept. v. Illinois Human Rights Comm'n, 233 Ill. 2d 125 (2009). Quoting its earlier decision in Geise, the court stated: "Where an employee has been sexually harassed by supervisory personnel, *** the Act imposes strict liability on the employer, regardless of whether the employer knew of the offending conduct." It added: "On the issue of employer liability in a sexual harassment claim, we are bound by the language in the Act, not by decisions of the federal courts." The decision applied an earlier version of section 2-102(D). The current text limits the knowledge-and-correction condition to harassment by nonemployees and nonmanagerial, nonsupervisory employees and does not extend it to supervisors.

Individual liability follows the wording of each clause. Section 2-102(D) names "any employer, employee, agent of any employer" among those who violate the Act by engaging in sexual harassment, so an employee or agent who engages in sexual harassment commits a civil rights violation. The general harassment clause in 2-102(A) is written as a violation "for any employer." Separately, section 6-101(B) makes it a civil rights violation for a person to "aid, abet, compel, or coerce a person to commit any violation of this Act."

Retaliation for complaining

Section 6-101(A) makes it a civil rights violation to retaliate against a person because that person has "(i) opposed or reported conduct that the person reasonably and in good faith believes to be prohibited under Articles 2, 4, 5, 5A, and 6; (ii) made a charge, filed a complaint, testified, assisted, or participated in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under this Act." Firings after a complaint, and how they fit with the state's default employment rule, are covered on the Illinois at-will employment and Illinois wrongful termination pages.

Deadlines and where to file

The Illinois Department of Human Rights takes charges under the Act.

• IDHR deadline: "Within 2 years after the date that a civil rights violation allegedly has been committed, a charge in writing under oath or affirmation may be filed with the Department" (7A-102(A)(1)). The same deadline applies to harassment and other employment charges.
• Dual filing with the EEOC: "If a charge is filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) within 300 calendar days after the date of the alleged civil rights violation, the charge shall be deemed filed with the Department on the date filed with the EEOC" (7A-102(A-1)(1)).
• If IDHR does not finish: IDHR must issue its report within 365 days after a charge is properly filed, or any longer period the parties agree to in writing. If it has not, "the complainant shall have 90 days to either file the complainant's own complaint with the Human Rights Commission or commence a civil action in the appropriate circuit court" (7A-102(G)).
• Federal charge: the EEOC states that its "180 calendar day filing deadline is extended to 300 calendar days if a state or local agency enforces a law that prohibits employment discrimination on the same basis." The EEOC's Chicago field office lists the Illinois Department of Human Rights (its Chicago and Springfield offices) as a fair employment practices agency (FEPA), and states that in Illinois "an individual has 300 days from the date of alleged harm to file a charge with this office against an employer with 15 or more employees" (20 or more for age discrimination).

The 2-year IDHR deadline and the 300-day EEOC period are separate clocks. The steps between filing and suit, and the remedies available, are on the Illinois wrongful termination page. The Illinois employment discrimination settlement calculator is an estimating tool, not a prediction of any outcome.

Sexual harassment training requirements

Illinois requires annual sexual harassment prevention training from private employers. Section 2-109(C) provides:

"Except for those employers subject to the requirements of Section 5-10.5 of the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act, every employer with employees working in this State shall use the model sexual harassment prevention training program created by the Department or establish its own sexual harassment prevention training program that equals or exceeds the minimum standards in subsection (B). The sexual harassment prevention training shall be provided at least once a year to all employees." (775 ILCS 5/2-109(C))

The duty reaches every employer with employees working in Illinois and all of its employees, not only supervisors. If an employer violates the section, IDHR "shall issue a notice to show cause giving the employer 30 days to comply," and if the employer does not comply within 30 days, IDHR petitions the Human Rights Commission for an order imposing a civil penalty (2-109(D)).

Restaurants and bars carry two extra duties under section 2-110:

• Written policy: "Every restaurant and bar operating in this State must have a sexual harassment policy provided to all employees, in writing, within the first calendar week of the employee's employment," and the policy must be available in English and Spanish (2-110(B)).
• Supplemental training: every restaurant and bar that is an employer under the Act must use IDHR's supplemental model training program or its own program that equals or exceeds the requirements of subsection (C), provided at least once a year (2-110(D)).

Hotels and casinos have separate duties under the Hotel and Casino Employee Safety Act. Each hotel and casino must equip an employee assigned to work in a guest room, restroom or casino floor where no other employee is present with a safety device or notification device, at no cost to the employee, and each hotel employer and casino employer must "develop, maintain, and comply with a written anti-sexual harassment policy to protect employees against sexual assault and sexual harassment by guests" (820 ILCS 325/5-10). The policy must, among other things, instruct the complaining employee to leave the immediate area where danger is perceived, offer temporary work assignments away from the offending guest, and provide necessary paid time off to file a police report or criminal complaint and, if required, to testify. Section 5-15 makes it unlawful to retaliate against an employee for reasonably using the device, for using those policy provisions, or for disclosing, reporting or testifying about a violation of the Act.

Workplace notices and annual disclosures

Section 2-102(K) makes it a civil rights violation for an employer to fail to post, in a conspicuous location where notices to employees are customarily posted, an IDHR-prepared or approved notice summarizing the Article's requirements and how to file a charge, "including the right to be free from unlawful discrimination, the right to be free from sexual harassment, and the right to certain reasonable accommodations," or to fail to include that information in any employee handbook. On notice of a violation, IDHR may issue a notice to show cause giving the employer 30 days to correct it.

Section 2-108 requires disclosures about past cases: "by each July 1," each employer that had an adverse judgment or administrative ruling against it in the preceding calendar year, as the section provides, must disclose specified information to IDHR, starting with the total number of adverse judgments or administrative rulings during the preceding year. The section is scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2030.

NDAs, confidentiality and arbitration

The Workplace Transparency Act, 820 ILCS 96, limits agreements that silence or waive harassment and discrimination claims. Its current text reflects P.A. 104-320, effective January 1, 2026.

• Conditions of employment (1-25(a)): an agreement, clause, covenant or waiver "that is a unilateral condition of employment or continued employment and has the purpose or effect of preventing an employee or prospective employee from making truthful statements or disclosures about alleged unlawful employment practices" is against public policy, "void to the extent it prevents such statements or disclosures, and severable from an otherwise valid and enforceable contract."
• Mutual conditions of employment (1-25(c), (d)): an agreement that is a mutual condition of employment may contain those terms only if it is in writing, demonstrates actual, knowing and bargained-for consideration from both parties, and acknowledges the employee's rights to report good faith allegations of unlawful employment practices to government agencies and of criminal conduct to officials, to participate in proceedings related to unlawful employment practices, to make truthful statements or disclosures required by law, to request or receive confidential legal advice, and to engage in concerted activity to address work-related issues. An agreement that does not comply is presumed to be a unilateral condition governed by 1-25(a) or (b).
• Forced waivers and arbitration (1-25(b)): a unilateral condition of employment that "requires the employee or prospective employee to waive, arbitrate, or otherwise diminish any existing or future claim, right, or benefit related to an unlawful employment practice" is against public policy and "void to the extent it denies an employee or prospective employee a substantive or procedural right or remedy related to alleged unlawful employment practices."
• Settlement and termination agreements (1-30): confidentiality about alleged unlawful employment practices is allowed only if, among other conditions, "confidentiality is the documented preference of the employee" and is mutually beneficial; the employer notifies the employee in writing of the right to have an attorney or representative review the agreement; there is bargained-for consideration for confidentiality separate from the consideration for a release of claims; the agreement does not waive claims of unlawful employment practices that accrue after it is signed; the employee is given 21 calendar days to consider the agreement, though the employee may sign sooner, knowingly and voluntarily waiving further time; and, unless knowingly and voluntarily waived, the employee has 7 calendar days after signing to revoke it. An employer may not unilaterally include a clause stating that "the promises of confidentiality are the preference of the employee" (1-30(b)). A confidentiality promise that does not comply is void and severable (1-30(c)).
• Reporting to government (1-20): no contract or other document may "prohibit, prevent, or otherwise restrict" an employee, prospective employee or former employee from "reporting any allegations of unlawful conduct to federal, State, or local officials for investigation," including alleged unlawful employment practices.
• Right to testify (1-40): an agreement that waives an employee's or former employee's right to testify about alleged criminal conduct or alleged unlawful employment practices, when required or requested to attend a proceeding by court order, subpoena or written request from an administrative agency or the legislature, "is void and unenforceable."
• Investigations (1-45): the Act does not limit an employer's ability to require confidentiality of others' allegations from employees who receive complaints or investigate them as part of their assigned duties, or from an employee or third party asked to participate in an open and ongoing investigation and to maintain reasonable confidentiality.

Federal law adds limits for sexual harassment disputes: the Speak Out Act makes nondisclosure and nondisparagement clauses agreed to before a sexual harassment dispute arises judicially unenforceable where the conduct is alleged to violate federal, tribal or state law, and the Ending Forced Arbitration Act lets the person alleging sexual harassment elect court over a predispute arbitration agreement, both explained on the workplace harassment laws hub.

Workplace protection restraining orders

The Workplace Violence Prevention Act, 820 ILCS 275, lets an employer with at least 15 employees during any work week (275/10) seek a workplace protection restraining order when an employee has suffered unlawful violence and the respondent has made a credible threat of violence to be carried out at the workplace, when an employee believes the respondent has made such a threat, or when an unlawful act of violence has been carried out or a credible threat made at the workplace (275/15). The Act defines unlawful violence to include "any act of violence, harassment, or stalking as defined by the Criminal Code of 2012."

Is workplace bullying illegal in Illinois?

The Human Rights Act's harassment definitions reach unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature (2-101(E)) or unwelcome conduct "on the basis of" a listed trait (2-101(E-1)). Hostility aimed at an employee for reasons unconnected to sex or another listed trait falls outside those definitions.

Documenting harassment and workplace monitoring

Illinois rules on recording a conversation at work, including a conversation with a harasser, are on the Illinois workplace recording laws page. Employer monitoring of email, devices and workspaces is covered on the Illinois employee monitoring laws page.

Recent and upcoming changes

• January 1, 2026: P.A. 103-804 added the general harassment definition in 2-101(E-1) and the harassment clause in 2-102(A).
• January 1, 2026: P.A. 104-320 amended the Workplace Transparency Act sections on conditions of employment, settlement and termination agreements and reporting to government (820 ILCS 96/1-20, 1-25, 1-30).
• January 1, 2027 (upcoming): P.A. 104-793 amends section 2-102, including the notice requirement in 2-102(K)(1).
• June 1, 2027 (upcoming): P.A. 104-744 amends the definition of unlawful discrimination in section 1-103.
• January 1, 2030 (scheduled): section 2-108, the annual disclosure of adverse judgments and rulings, is scheduled to be repealed.

Related pages

• Workplace harassment laws by state
• Illinois wrongful termination
• Illinois at-will employment laws
• Illinois employee monitoring laws
• Illinois workplace recording laws

This article provides general legal information about Illinois workplace harassment law under the Illinois Human Rights Act and related Illinois statutes as of 2026-10-20. It is not legal advice. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Illinois or the Illinois Department of Human Rights.

Last updated: 2026-10-20.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is workplace harassment illegal in Illinois?

Yes. Under 775 ILCS 5/2-102(D), sexual harassment by any employer, employee or agent of an employer is a civil rights violation, and since January 1, 2026, section 2-102(A) also makes it a violation for an employer to engage in harassment on the basis of the traits listed in 2-101(E-1), such as race, religion, age and disability.

Does Illinois harassment law apply to small employers?

For sexual harassment, the Act covers any person employing one or more employees, with no 20-week requirement (2-101(B)(1)(b)). For harassment on other traits, it covers employers with one or more employees within Illinois during 20 or more calendar weeks in the year of or before the violation, except that disability and pregnancy claims also have no 20-week requirement. Federal Title VII starts at 15 employees.

How long do I have to file a harassment charge in Illinois?

A charge with the Illinois Department of Human Rights is due within 2 years after the alleged civil rights violation (775 ILCS 5/7A-102(A)(1)). An EEOC charge filed within 300 calendar days is deemed filed with IDHR on the date filed with the EEOC.

Does Illinois require sexual harassment training?

Yes. Under 775 ILCS 5/2-109(C), every employer with employees working in Illinois, other than those covered by the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act's training section, must provide sexual harassment prevention training at least once a year to all employees, using IDHR's model program or its own program that equals or exceeds the minimum standards.

Can a coworker be personally liable for sexual harassment in Illinois?

Section 2-102(D) makes it a civil rights violation for any employer, employee or agent of an employer to engage in sexual harassment, so an employee who engages in sexual harassment commits a violation. Section 6-101(B) also reaches any person who aids, abets, compels or coerces a violation.

Is an Illinois employer liable for a supervisor's sexual harassment?

In Sangamon County Sheriff's Dept. v. Illinois Human Rights Comm'n (2009), the Illinois Supreme Court stated that the Act imposes strict liability on the employer for sexual harassment by supervisory personnel, regardless of whether the employer knew. For coworkers and nonemployees, the statute makes the employer responsible only if it becomes aware of the conduct and fails to take reasonable corrective measures.

Can an Illinois employer make me sign an NDA about harassment?

The Workplace Transparency Act voids a unilateral condition of employment that prevents truthful statements about alleged unlawful employment practices, to the extent it does so (820 ILCS 96/1-25(a)); a mutual condition of employment may include such terms only if it is in writing, carries bargained-for consideration and acknowledges listed employee rights (1-25(c)). Confidentiality in a settlement or termination agreement is allowed only on listed conditions, including that it is the employee's documented preference, separate consideration, 21 days to consider and, unless knowingly and voluntarily waived, 7 days to revoke (1-30).

Are interns and contractors protected from harassment in Illinois?

Unpaid interns count as employees for the sexual harassment clause (2-101(A)). The Act also bars sexual harassment and harassment of nonemployees, including contractors and consultants directly performing services under a contract with the employer, in the workplace (2-102(D-5), (A-10)).

Is workplace bullying illegal in Illinois?

The Human Rights Act's harassment definitions reach unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature or on the basis of a listed trait. Hostility unconnected to sex or another listed trait falls outside those definitions.