Illinois Rep. Carol Ammons, D-Urbana, on Wednesday introduced legislation that provides protections and benefits to temp workers. HB 690, referred to as the, “Responsible Job Creation Act,” includes 30 provisions to toughen staffing industry regulation under the existing Day Labor Services Act.

The bill aims to close the enforcement gap of unregulated staffing agencies; support the creation of stable, permanent, living-wage jobs; and protect the lives of vulnerable workers, according to Rep. Ammons. If passed, it requires temp workers be paid wages equal to their direct-hire counterparts, and increases transparency in hiring practices by the staffing agencies.

Illinois counts more than 800,000 temp workers, according to the American Staffing Association.

Partners for the bill include the Chicago Worker’s Collaborative, Warehouse Workers for Justice and Raise the Floor Alliance. It is endorsed by the Illinois AFL-CIO, Latino Policy Forum, National Employment Law Project and Rainbow Push Coalition.

Crain’s Chicago Business reports staffing agencies would be fined $50 each time they failed to provide workers with an employment notice that includes their job title and pay rate. (Because many employees do not receive pay stubs, these notices help guard against wage theft.) The bill would prevent staffing agencies from charging workers for drug tests and background checks, which can cost a low-wage worker more than $500 a year. It also shifts the burden of proving retaliation from the worker to the employer for a three-month window following a worker's complaint about pay or working conditions.