On Monday, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul reached a $1 million settlement with Colony Display LLC (Colony) for allegations of wage-fixing and no-poach agreements with three staffing agencies. The colony is obligated to reimburse temporary workers impacted by these illegal practices as part of the settlement according to the Illinois Attorney General's Office.
Attorney General Raoul filed the lawsuit in 2020 against Colony and three agencies named Elite Staffing Inc., Metro Staff Inc., and Midway Staffing Inc. The lawsuit accuses the staffing agencies quickly of entering into an illegal agreement to not solicit or hire staff from one another and set identical wages for employees. Colony allegedly assisted in implementing and enforcing these illegal agreements as an intermediary.
The lawsuit alleges that the illegal agreements limited competition, hindering temporary workers in Illinois from pursuing improved employment conditions with higher wages and better benefits. Attorney General Raoul stated in response to the settlement, "We will not tolerate companies collaborating to take advantage of workers, and my office is committed to enforcing laws that protect workers’ rights and access to fair wages and opportunities to better provide for their families."
Colony agreed to pay $1.2 million primarily to compensate temporary workers impacted by the alleged illegal agreements. Besides, Colony must implement compliance measures, follow antitrust law, and reinstate affected workers at the company and the implicated staffing agencies.
Attorney General Raoul's claims against the three agencies are under consideration by the Illinois Supreme Court, where oral arguments were heard on November 15. The Colony case has moved back to the circuit court from the state supreme court. Both parties presented their agreement for final approval on November 16.
This settlement is a part of Attorney General Raoul's ongoing commitment to workers' rights and opposing illegal employment practices. Raoul filed a similar lawsuit against the client of another group of staffing agencies, Vee Pak LLC, which operates as Voyant Beauty, a case still pending. He also led a bipartisan coalition to contest no-poach agreements affecting Illinois workers through federal litigation.
General Raoul encourages workers who believe they have experienced any violation of their rights to take action by contacting the Workplace Rights Hotline at 1-844-740-5076 or to file a complaint online through his office's website as per the office's press release.
