Illinois Public Act 104-78 amended the Family Military Leave Act to provide paid leave for eligible employees who participate in military funeral honors detail. The Family Military Leave Act was also amended to change the name of the act to the “Military Leave Act” (“Act”). The Act took effect on August 1, 2025. The following is a summary of the key provisions of the Act:
Eligibility
The Act applies to employers employing 51 or more employees. An employee includes an employee of a covered employer who has been employed by the same employer for at least 12 months and has been employed for at least 1,250 hours of service during the 12-month period immediately preceding the commencement of the leave.
An employee qualifies for paid leave under the Act if the employee:
(1) is trained to participate in a funeral honors detail at the funeral of a veteran; and
(2) is either:
(a) a retired or active member of the Armed Forces of the United States or a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States, including the Illinois National Guard; or
(b) an authorized provider or a registered member of a nonprofit or other organization that is an authorized provider, including a member of a veterans’ service organization.
A “funeral honors detail” means an honor guard detail provided for the funeral of any veteran in compliance with 10 U.S.C. 1491 and any associated federal regulations. A “funeral honors detail” includes at least two members of the U.S. Armed Forces, one of whom is from the deceased veteran’s service branch, with the remainder of the detail consisting of members of the armed forces, whether retired or not, or members of an authorized provider. The funeral honors detail performs a ceremony at the funeral that includes the folding of a United States flag and the presentation of the flag to the veteran’s family, in addition to the playing of “Taps.”
An “authorized provider” means an individual or group, recognized by the armed forces, who is not a service member or employee of the United States government and who augments the uniformed members of a military funeral honors detail. “Authorized provider” may include, but is not limited to, veterans’ service organizations, trained volunteers of the Reserve Officer Training Corps, honor guards, and other appropriate individuals and organizations that support the rendering of military funeral honors.
Notice
An employee taking funeral honors detail leave shall give his or her employer reasonable notice, as is practicable. An employer may request a confirmation from the relevant veterans’ service organization that dispatched the employee to the funeral honors detail or any official notice provided to the employee in relation to the funeral honors detail that can be used as proof of the employee’s participation in the detail.
An employer may deny a request for leave if granting the request would, at an independent living facility, assisted living facility, nursing home facility, or other similar congregate care facility, or at a facility providing 24/7 care, reduce staffing levels to below the established minimum or impair the safe and efficient operations of the facility. An employer shall not deny leave if doing so violates the terms of an applicable collective bargaining agreement.
Amount of Leave
An employee may use up to eight hours of leave per calendar month to participate in a funeral honors detail, up to a total of 40 hours per calendar year, or more, if authorized by his or her employer or if provided for in a collective bargaining agreement.
Payment
An employer of an employee who takes leave under the Act must pay the employee his or her regular rate of pay for the leave taken to participate in a funeral honors detail.
Other Leave Entitlements
An employee who takes leave under the Act may do so in lieu of, and without having exhausted, his or her vacation leave, personal leave, compensatory leave, or any other leave that may be granted to the employee, including sick leave and disability leave.
Benefits Protection
Any employee who exercises the right to funeral honors detail leave under the Act, upon expiration of the leave, shall be entitled to be restored by the employer to the position held by the employee when the leave commenced or to a position with equivalent seniority status, employee benefits, pay, and other terms and conditions of employment.
During any funeral honors detail leave taken under the Act, the employer shall make it possible for employees to continue their benefits at the employee’s expense. The employer and employee may negotiate for the employer to maintain benefits at the employer’s expense for the duration of the leave.
Unresolved Points
The Act does not state whether the requirement that an employer have 51 or more employees applies only to those working in Illinois or also includes out-of-state employees. The Act does not provide that any state agency (e.g., Illinois Department of Labor) will enforce the Act, nor does it state whether any regulations will be promulgated to interpret the Act.
Unlike other leave laws, there is no requirement that this leave be included in any employee handbook or posted in a conspicuous location at the employer’s place of business.
Action Plan
Given the effective date of the Act, employers should take steps to comply with requests for leave under the Act. While there is no requirement that the Act be included in an employee handbook, personnel who handle leave requests for an employer should be trained under the Act’s requirements.
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