Illinois Employer to Pay $10K Penalty for Lack of Workers’ Comp Insurance

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An uninsured employer in Illinois has pled guilty to a Class 4 felony for refusing to obtain workers’ compensation insurance, the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission announced. John Linek, individually and as president of SMS Logistics of Chicago, has been ordered to pay a $10,000 penalty for refusing to obtain workers’ compensation insurance. The IWCC’s Insurance Compliance Unit had been requesting compliance with the Act from this trucking firm since 2010. In August 2013, the Compliance Division obtained a felony conviction against Ahmed Ghosien, d/b/a Ghosien European Auto Werks in Hometown. Ghosien pled guilty to a Class 4 felony for failing to obtain workers’ compensation insurance. The IWCC’s Insurance Compliance Unit worked with the Cook County Sheriff’s Office and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Special Prosecutions Division to obtain the conviction. Again, the Insurance Compliance Unit had worked on the case since 2010. Both of these individuals were given many opportunities to obtain insurance before charges were filed, but they persistently refused, the IWCC said.

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Illinois: Employer Convicted of a Felony for Failure to Have Workers' Compensation Insurance

The Illinois Worker’s Compensation (IWCC), in conjunction with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division and the Cook County Sheriff’s Office, has secured the first felony conviction for failure to secure workers’ compensation insurance. 

Mr. Ahmed Ghosien, d/b/a Ghosien European Auto Werks, refused to comply with Illinois law despite having been given several opportunities to become compliant.  After aggressive enforcement efforts, on July 25, 2013, Mr. Ghosien entered a guilty plea to the Class 4 felony (People v. Ahmed Ghosien, 12 CR 20949).  This is the first felony conviction against an employer for failure to obtain workers’ compensation insurance since the penalty increase, from a misdemeanor to a Class 4 felony, was introduced in 2005 and remained a critical part of Gov. Quinn’s reforms to the Worker’s Compensation Act in 2011.