Illinois workers who are sexually assaulted on the job often hear that they can "file with the state" or "file with the EEOC," sometimes in the same breath. Those are two different systems built on two different laws: the Illinois Human Rights Act and Title VII of the federal Civil Rights Act. They overlap in important ways, but they differ in who they cover and how much time they allow. Understanding those differences can keep a survivor from losing a claim simply because the wrong door was chosen or the right one closed.
Neither path requires a police report, an arrest or a criminal conviction. Both are civil routes, and both examine what the employer knew, what it should have known and what it did in response.
Two Laws, One Purpose
Both the Illinois Human Rights Act and Title VII treat sexual harassment, including sexual assault, as unlawful discrimination in the workplace. For an employee, a claim against the employer usually runs through one or both of these laws. A third option, an ordinary civil claim for assault or battery, can be brought against the individual who committed the act.
Difference One: Which Employers Are Covered
The Illinois Human Rights Act covers sexual harassment by employers with as few as one employee. Title VII generally applies only to employers with 15 or more employees. If you work for a small business, the state route may be the only discrimination claim available.
Difference Two: Where Charges Go
State charges are filed with the Illinois Department of Human Rights. Federal charges are filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Each agency has its own process.
Difference Three: How Long You Have
This is often the most important difference. A charge under the Illinois Human Rights Act must generally be filed within two years, a period that took effect on January 1, 2025. A Title VII charge must generally be filed within 300 days. A civil claim for the assault itself is generally subject to a two-year limit for adults. All of these are far shorter than the rules for childhood abuse claims, so asking soon matters.
Difference Four: Who Can Be Named
Under the Illinois Human Rights Act, a sexual harassment charge can name both the individual harasser and the employer, and both can be found liable. A separate assault or battery claim can also be brought against the individual under ordinary civil law.
A Third Statute to Consider
The Illinois Gender Violence Act, 740 ILCS 82, provides a separate civil claim for gender-related violence. It reaches anyone who personally committed the violence or personally encouraged or assisted it, and it includes a distinct route against employers with its own conditions and limitation period. The Act's time limits vary by category, so it should be evaluated early along with the other options.
Why You May Not Have to Choose Just One
The same set of facts can support claims under more than one law. Deciding which to pursue, and in what order, depends on the size of the employer, the dates involved and the evidence. That is a strategic question best answered with the full facts in front of you.
Evidence Is the Same Either Way
No matter which statute you use, the company's paperwork tends to decide the outcome. Earlier grievances against the same person, an investigator's notes and the email trail among managers all reveal what leadership understood. A file marked closed is not a clean slate; it is evidence that someone was told. That evidence carries the same weight under state law, federal law and the Gender Violence Act.
Customers, Visitors and Clients
Customers, clients and guests stand outside the harassment statutes, which are written for workers. Their claim against a business generally depends on whether it carelessly hired or held onto someone it knew, or should have known, posed a danger. Because nearly all such employers are privately held, public-body immunity is rarely a factor in these cases.
What Workers Ask Us
My company has fewer than 15 employees. Title VII may not apply, but the Illinois Human Rights Act likely does for sexual harassment.
More than 300 days have passed. A federal charge may be late, but the two-year state period could still be open.
Is there a fee to talk to you? No. These cases are handled on a contingency fee, so there is no fee unless there is a recovery.
It happened a while back and my memory is patchy. Both are common. Records do much of the work.
Starting With Us
You can call simply to ask which route might fit, and you will not need to describe the assault. If you want us to look further, we examine at no cost which employer had a duty, what it knew, which records exist and which deadlines apply under each law. You get an honest answer and make the decision. If you stop, nothing you said leaves the firm. If you continue, we handle filings, deadlines, records and insurers, and can request protections for your identity.
Reach Ervin Nevitt
Ervin Nevitt is a partner at Coplan + Crane and joined the Illinois bar in 2014. The firm picks up (708) 671-6858 around the clock from its office at 60 W Randolph St, Suite 333, Chicago, IL 60601.
RAINN's National Sexual Assault Hotline, 1-800-656-4673, is available free and in confidence whenever you need it. If anyone is in danger, call 911. Reaching out to RAINN leaves your legal options unchanged. For more information, visit: https://survivorsofabuseil.com/workplace-sexual-assault-lawyer-il/
Attorney advertising. Offered as general information; it is not legal advice.
