Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed a groundbreaking law that will shine a light on who gets hired – and who gets the most work – on taxpayer-funded construction projects. The law, known as HB 3400 (Public Act 103-0347), takes effect on January 1, 2024, and was championed by Chicago Women in Trades to promote fairness in the construction industry.
Construction companies working on public projects are already required to report detailed information about their workers to the state. This includes tracking the number of hours each person works, broken down by gender, race, and skill level. HB 3400 amends the Prevailing Wage Act to require the Illinois Department of Labor to produce improved quarterly reports on the demographics of workers on publicly funded construction projects. The data will be collected by project and contractor, breaking down worker information by gender, race, ethnicity, trade, and skill level, with special attention to total work hours performed.
The new reporting requirements address a longtime concern from women in the trades, especially Black and Brown tradeswomen, who often find themselves getting fewer work hours than their white male coworkers. Less time on the job means less experience, slower career advancement, and reduced access to essential benefits, such as health insurance and retirement savings.
“We hear from women all the time about struggling to get enough hours to support themselves and advance in their careers,” said Beth Berendsen, director of policy and advocacy at Chicago Women in Trades. “This law will finally give us the data to show exactly what’s happening on construction sites across Illinois.”
While more work remains to achieve true equality in the construction industry, this new transparency law marks an important first step toward holding employers accountable. The victory came after tradeswomen across Illinois contacted their legislators and shared their personal stories about the workplace barriers they faced.
Chicago Women in Trades is grateful to the bill’s champions in the Illinois General Assembly: Representatives Will Davis and Will Guzzardi, and Senators Mattie Hunter and Sara Feigenholtz. The organization also recognizes Governor Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Labor for their commitment to workplace equity.
