Compliance Conundrum: Staying Ahead of the New One of a Kind Military Paid Leave Law in Illinois

Illinois Governor, JB Pritzker, signed Senate Bill 220 on August 1, 2025 which amends the state’s Military Leave Act and provides up to 40 hours of paid leave for eligible employees serving on a funeral honors detail. The law went into effect on August 1, 2025. 

Covered Employers and Employees

The law applies to employers with 51 or more employees.  

Eligible employees must be employed by the same employer for at least 12 months and have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12-month period preceding the leave. An eligible employee must also be trained to participate in a funeral honors detail and be either a retired or active member of the armed forces or reserve, or an authorized provider, or registered member of an authorized provider, who supplement uniformed members of a military funeral honors detail. 

Amount of Leave and Pay Required 

An employee may use up to 8 hours per calendar month to participate in a funeral honors detail. A maximum of 40 hours per calendar year may be taken. An employee must be paid at their regular rate of pay for time taken under this law.  

Funeral Honors Detail Leave In Addition to Other Required Leave 

The leave taken for funeral honors detail under this law is in addition to any other paid leave provided to the employee under Illinois law or employee benefit. An employer may not require an employee to use down any other paid leave prior to taking funeral honors detail leave. 

Notice and Posting Requirements for the Military Paid Leave Law in Illinois

An employee taking funeral honors detail leave must give their employer reasonable notice of the need to take leave. The employer may request confirmation from the relevant veteran’s service organization or request any official notice provided to the employee in relation to the funeral honors detail. 

There is no obligation for the employer to give employees written notice of their rights under this amendment to the Military Leave Act. Employers do not need to track and report available paid leave balances for funeral honors detail leave. And there is no workplace posting requirement for this leave. 

Narrow Exemption to Deny Request for Leave 

Certain employers such as an independent living facility, assisted living facility, nursing home facility, or other similar congregate care facility or facility providing 24/7 care, may deny a request for leave if granting such a request would reduce staffing levels to below the established minimum or impair the safe and efficient operations of the facility. 

Next Steps 

Since the law went into effect immediately upon signing on August 1, 2025, employers should review their military leave policies to ensure compliance.