LPC HONOR BAND FESTIVAL – ALAH HIGH SCHOOL PARTICIPANTS.
LPC HONOR BAND FESTIVAL – ALAH HIGH SCHOOL PARTICIPANTS. The students pictured were selected to represent Arthur Lovington Atwood Hammond High School in the LPC Conference Honor Band. They traveled to Heritage High School last week where they spent the day rehearsing with other students from across our conference. The day ended with a concert…
Read MoreLPC HONOR BAND FESTIVAL – BEMENT HIGH SCHOOL PARTICIPANTS.
LPC HONOR BAND FESTIVAL – BEMENT HIGH SCHOOL PARTICIPANTS. Bement High School band students were selected to participate in the LPC Honor Band Festival held at Heritage High School. The ensemble, made up of talented musicians from across all LPC conference schools, delivered an outstanding performance. The honor band was conducted by Dr. Jennifer A.…
Read MoreArthur school district third quarter honor roll
Arthur Grade School High Honors 6th Grade: Kinsley Elaine Eads, Chad Christopher Gudgel, Miranda Jo Gingerich, Austin Miller, Mia Oye, Jaelynn Sanchez. 7th Grade: Sophia Nikole Beck, Chloe Elaine Lawson, Cody Lee Miller, Chloe Mae Monts, Natalie Gailine Peralta, Trinity Elaine Schrock. 8th Grade: Irery Vianney Briseno and Halle Moreaux Oye. Honors 6th Grade: Amir…
Read MoreCompanies could be on the hook for work-related activities before and after shifts start, court rules The Illinois Supreme Court ruled state wage law does not include certain federal exclusions Article Summary Illinois’ wage law does not include federal exclusions that would shield companies from having to pay employees for pre-and post-shift activities, the state high court ruled. The ruling is based on a civil suit brought against Amazon by two former employees after they were not compensated for pre-shift health screenings during the COVID-19 pandemic. Amazon argued the court should follow federal regulations, but the employees said they were entitled to compensation because state law does not include those regulations. The case will now return to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. This summary was written by the reporters and editors who worked on this story. By JENNA SCHWEIKERT Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD — Illinois law does not specifically shield companies from having to pay employees for time spent completing required pre- and post-work activities, the state Supreme Court unanimously ruled. Although federal regulations exclude that requirement, the court found Illinois’ wage law does not include any similar provisions. That means employers could be required to compensate employees for required activities outside of the normal work day. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit asked the state’s high court to decide if state law includes the federal regulation found in the Fair Labor Standards Act. The question originates from a civil suit brought against Amazon by two former employees, although the court’s ruling is not an official ruling in that case. In the opinion, Justice David Overstreet wrote that the court’s goal was to determine the legislature’s intent at the time Illinois’ 1971 Minimum Wage law was enacted, emphasizing that the court aimed to adhere to the plain language of the law. “We must refrain from departing from the statute’s plain language by reading into it exceptions, limitations, or conditions that conflict with the express language of the statute,” Overstreet wrote. Justice Overstreet delivered the court’s opinion, with Chief Justice P. Scott Neville and Justices Lisa Holder White, Joy Cunningham, Elizabeth Rochford, and Mary O’Brien concurring. Justice Sanjay Tailor did not take part in the decision. Johnson v. Amazon In 2020, Amazon required its employees to complete 10-15-minute pre-shift health screenings to avoid transmission of COVID-19. Two employees, Lisa Johnson and Gale Miller Anderson, later sued the company in the Cook County circuit court, arguing they should have been compensated for that time under federal and state law. Amazon requested the case be moved to federal court in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and moved to dismiss the case, arguing they were not required to pay Johnson and Anderson based on federal exemptions for preliminary work activities in the Fair Labor Standards Act. The federal court approved the dismissal under federal and state statutes, finding that federal law had frequently been used to interpret Illinois’ Minimum Wage Law. Johnson and Anderson appealed, this time arguing they were entitled to compensation only under state law, which does not include those federal exemptions. Amazon, in reply, said federal law supported the district court’s conclusion that the exclusions apply to state law. The Seventh Circuit asked the Illinois Supreme Court to settle the question, who then found that Amazon could not rely on federal regulations to inform Illinois’ minimum wage law because the General Assembly chose not to include the specific exclusions on preliminary activities. A plain reading of the law “reveals that the General Assembly did not signify any intention to incorporate the preliminary and postliminary activities exclusions,” Overstreet wrote, referencing a subsection of the wage law that includes a list of exceptions. “Notably, four of these exceptions incorporate by reference specific provisions of the FLSA, regulations of the United States Department of Labor (USDOL), or both,” Overstreet wrote. “The General Assembly delegated the authority to define ‘hours worked’ to IDOL (the Illinois Department of Labor). In turn IDOL adopted a definition of ‘hours worked’ that necessarily includes preliminary and postliminary activities, explicitly encompassing all time that an employee is required to be on an employer’s premises.” The case will now return to the Seventh Circuit court. Pending that decision, or any action by the legislature, Illinois employers may soon have to compensate employees for that extra time spent preparing for a shift. Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.
Companies could be on the hook for work-related activities before and after shifts start, court rules The Illinois Supreme Court ruled state wage law does not include certain federal exclusions Article Summary Illinois’ wage law does not include federal exclusions that would shield companies from having to pay employees for pre-and post-shift activities, the state…
Read MoreCompanies could be on the hook for work-related activities before and after shifts start, court rules
Companies could be on the hook for work-related activities before and after shifts start, court rules The Illinois Supreme Court ruled state wage law does not include certain federal exclusions Article Summary Illinois’ wage law does not include federal exclusions that would shield companies from having to pay employees for pre-and post-shift activities, the state…
Read More‘Hymn Sing in the Hayloft’ April 10
By Ruth Moreland On Friday, April 10, at 7 p.m. the barn at the Illinois Amish Heritage Center in Arthur will be filled with singing. The humble hospitality of the Herschberger-Miller barn offers a comfortable gathering place, perfect for the first community “Hymn Sing In The Hayloft.” If you have experienced singing hymns together, you…
Read MoreArcola softball drops three non-conference game
By Mike Monahan ARCOLA – The Arcola softball team played Shelbyville Monday in a non-conference game and lost 15-1 at Kelly Moore Memorial Park as the Lady Rams improved to 3-1 and the Lady Riders dropped to 0-6. Earlier the Lady Riders lost to LeRoy, 16-1 in a game called after three and a third…
Read MoreArcola baseball opens with loss; rebounds with come-from-behind win
By Mike Monahan ARCOLA – Fisher, a team that will be joining the Lincoln Prairie Conference next season, held off Arcola, 7-4 in the season-opener last Friday. On a picture perfect Saturday at Kelly Moore Memorial Park Arcola earned its first win by scoring the last three runs of the game in the final two…
Read MoreArcola baseball returns Whisman, Brody Phillips and Griffith
By Mike Monahan ARCOLA – Three returning lettermen are back from last season’s 21-1 team that went 11-0 in the Lincoln Prairie Conference. The three included first team all-LPC player Brevyn Whisman and Brody Phillips. Jackson ‘Tank” Griffith, a second team all-LPC player is also back for coach Mike Phillips’ squad. A total of 25…
Read MoreArcola jr high track opened Tuesday
By Mike Monahan ARCOLA – The Arcola Junior High boys and girls track teams (sixth through eighth grade) have a total of 27 boys and 35 girls for a total of 62. The Purple Riders were to open the season Tuesday at Sullivan. Arcola boys junior high track roster 2026 Head coach: Steven Franco, fourth…
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