The Grain and Feed Association of Illinois and the Illinois Fertilizer and Chemical Association Statement on Request of Exemption to One Day Rest in Seven Act (ODRISA)
The Grain and Feed Association of Illinois (GFAI) and the Illinois Fertilizer and Chemical Association (IFCA) have been in talks with the Illinois Department of Labor regarding granting permits for exemptions to the One Day Rest In Seven Act for each of our respective industries. In the past, GFAI and IFCA have applied to the Illinois Department of Labor for an industry exemption to the One Day In Seven Act, and those permits have been granted. GFAI has been granted this request for 50 years.
After two attempts, the Illinois Department of Labor has decided to no longer grant associations permits for exemptions to the One Day Rest In Seven Act. Each employer will have to apply on their own.
Illinois Department of Labor states to GFAI and IFCA that: “We require employers to apply for the ODRISA permit for their business(es). They are the responsible entity and in the best position to determine the need for a permit, to have a worker work 7 days in a week without a day of rest, to determine exemption status, etc. Our Fair Labor Standards Division will work with employers and assist with any questions they may have in applying for the ODRISA permit.”
If you are not familiar with the One Day Rest In Seven Act, you can access it using this link: 820 ILCS 140/ One Day Rest In Seven Act. (ilga.gov)
The administrative rules are here: PART 220 SIX DAY WEEK LAW : Sections Listing (ilga.gov)
Among other things, the ODRISA requires employers to provide one day of rest out of seven; however, an exemption of up to 8 weeks can be requested without justification. Should more than 8 weeks be requested, justification must be provided. If a company is asking for two different 8 weeks requests for example one in the spring and another in the fall, the Illinois Department of Labor states: A company may be approved for more than 8 weeks in a calendar year, however in accordance with 820 ILCS 140/8, after 8 weeks they are required to provide a statement along with the application, justifying the business necessity for the request.
Sec. 8. The Director of Labor shall grant permits authorizing the employment of persons on days of rest designated pursuant to Section 4 of this Act. Such permits shall not authorize the employment of persons for 7 days a week for more than 8 weeks in any one year, unless the Director finds that the necessity for employment of persons on their designated day of rest cannot be remedied by increasing the number of employees or by adjusting production schedules. The Director of Labor shall give due consideration to business necessity and economic viability in granting such permits.
The process is not difficult; however, you must apply online. This is a link to the online application: ODRISA Permit Application (illinois.gov)
- The first part of the form is straightforward – company name, address, contact information, etc.
- Next there will be a box where you indicate the “Total Number of Employees” – this would include all employees for all job titles who may work on the seventh day.
- The next two boxes are dates – select the period you believe it will be necessary to request employees to work on the seventh day. This can be for up to 8 weeks (56 days).
- If more than 8 weeks, you will need to select “Yes” in the next box and attach a letter of justification. According to the Rules, the letter of justification must include the following:
- A statement that the necessity cannot be remedied by increasing the number of employees or by adjusting work scheduled and
- Business necessity and economic conditions making such a request necessary.
- And finally, you will see 4 boxes for Job Titles/Classifications and the Number of Employees in each Job Title/Classification.
- Technically, the Department wants you to submit a separate application if you have more than 4 Job Titles/Classifications; however, if you have 20 different job titles/classifications, then you would need to submit 5 applications. Being broad with the Job Titles/Classifications may be your best course of action. They indicated they are working on a website upgrade to allow employers to add more job titles, but that is not functional yet.
- No guarantee this will work, but if you have a lot of Job Titles, you can simply put something generic in the first job title/classification (even the words “see attached”) and then enter the total number of employees you are requesting the exemption for in the blank, then attach a document with all the job titles/classifications and the number of people in each job title/classification.
If you need additional information on the One Day Rest In Seven Act, this is the link to the ODRISA page on the IDOL website: One Day Rest In Seven Act (ODRISA) - Fair Labor Standards Division (illinois.gov)
One note of caution: select a period in the future. DO NOT wait and try to make it retroactive to a couple of days before you submit the application. If you do, your request will be denied! The request must be for future periods of time.
If you can get along with rotating a day off for employees and not have the necessity to request employees work on the seventh day, then no need to complete the application.