What is the minimum age to work as a youth sports referee in Illinois?

14 (Child Labor Law of 2024, eff. 1/1/2025); 13+ golf caddying; 12-13 may officiate/assist-instruct youth sports for not-for-profit youth club, park district, township or municipal parks with a parent present Explicit: 12-13 youth-sports officials/assistant instructors for nonprofit youth clubs & park districts (parent present); park-district recreation later hours for 14+; caddies 13+; parents' business exempt. State law keys on 'employ/permit to work' - no 1099 carve-out; misclassifying minor officials as contractors does not avoid child-labor rules.

When is a final paycheck due in Illinois if you let someone go?

Next regular payday 5%/month damages + fees (820 ILCS 115). Earned vacation must be paid out.

How does Illinois decide whether a coach or referee is a 1099 contractor or an employee?

Wage Payment & Collection Act: ABC test (820 ILCS 115/2); Minimum Wage Law: economic reality

Does a youth sports league in Illinois need workers' compensation for 1099 referees and coaches?

Illinois excludes true independent contractors from the Workers' Compensation Act, but the Act defines "employee" broadly as every person in the service of another under any contract of hire (820 ILCS 305/1(b)2), and the Commission decides status by the common-law right-to-control test with the Roberson v. Industrial Comm'n factors (right to control the manner of work, method of payment, right to discharge, who furnishes equipment, skill required, and whether the work is part of the hiring entity's regular business). A 1099 form and a contract label carry little weight. Sole proprietors and partners are not employees and are not covered unless they elect in (305/1(b)3); Illinois has no certificate or waiver of exemption for contractors. The contractor-under rule in 305/1(a)3 makes a hiring entity liable for an uninsured contractor's employees only in the extra-hazardous enterprises listed in Section 3, which do not include sports. No express WC or UI exclusion for sports officials: None found. UI uses the ABC test (820 ILCS 405/212), which is harder to satisfy than the WC test. Bottom line: 1099 referees who take game assignments freely and work for several leagues are usually outside WC, but coaches with set practice schedules, league-set pay and league equipment are at real risk of being found employees for WC and nearly certain employees for UI.

For youth sports organizations and event operators · Illinois rulebook

Youth sports labor rules in Illinois: who can you put in the game, and what do you owe them?

State rules for everyone a youth sports organization pays: coaches and trainers on payroll, officials and event staff on 1099, program and front-office staff, and the teenagers you hire for a season. Wages, final pay, minors, contractor status, workers' comp, safe sport and youth safety, 50 states + DC, checked against statute text.

Last reviewed Oct 1, 202651 jurisdictions · 32 rules each

Step 1

Pick the state where the work happens

Rules follow where people work, not where you are based. Running an event? Use the event state. Operating a club or league? Use the state where your staff coach, officiate and work.

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Set a role, age and pay type below to see which rules apply to your organization.

Step 2

Check a staffing plan

Tell us who you are paying, how old they are, and whether they are on payroll or 1099. We rank what applies.

State where the work happens

Role

Worker age

Paid as

Not sure if someone should be 1099 or on payroll?Answer 5 plain-English questions. We explain the sticking points in your state.5-question check

Tourney Direct does not decide classification. Confirm with a tax advisor or attorney before you onboard anyone as a contractor.

Step 3

Everything on file for Illinois

All 32 rules for this state, with the statutes and agency pages they came from.

Wages and pay
Minimum wage (2026): $15.00 (Chicago higher)
Required pay frequency: Semi-monthly
Final paycheck if you let them go: Next regular payday
Final paycheck if they quit: Next regular payday
Final-pay penalties: 5%/month damages + fees (820 ILCS 115). Earned vacation must be paid out.
State income tax withholding: Yes
Workers' comp required at: 1+
New-hire report due (days): 20
Minors
Minimum working age: 14 (Child Labor Law of 2024, eff. 1/1/2025); 13+ golf caddying; 12-13 may officiate/assist-instruct youth sports for not-for-profit youth club, park district, township or municipal parks with a parent present
Work permit: Yes, under 16 (employment certificate from school issuing officer/regional superintendent); employer keeps on file
Ages 14 to 15, school in session: 3 hrs/school day, 18 hrs/wk; 7am-7pm Labor Day-June 1; 8 hrs per 24-hr period
Ages 14 to 15, summer and breaks: 8 hrs/day, 40 hrs/wk; 7am-9pm June 1-Labor Day
Ages 16 to 17: None (Act covers under 16); federal has none
Weekend and evening games: Park district/municipal recreation exception: 14+ may work until 9pm on school days (max 3 hrs, 2 days/wk) and until 10pm June 1-Labor Day
Referee, coach and recreation exemptions: Explicit: 12-13 youth-sports officials/assistant instructors for nonprofit youth clubs & park districts (parent present); park-district recreation later hours for 14+; caddies 13+; parents' business exempt. State law keys on 'employ/permit to work' - no 1099 carve-out; misclassifying minor officials as contractors does not avoid child-labor rules.
Contractors and leave
How this state decides 1099 vs. payroll: Wage Payment & Collection Act: ABC test (820 ILCS 115/2); Minimum Wage Law: economic reality
Same question, for unemployment insurance: ABC test (820 ILCS 405/212)
Referee-specific rule: None found (no officials-specific statute; general tests apply) (assault laws only)
Workers' comp for 1099 referees and coaches: Illinois excludes true independent contractors from the Workers' Compensation Act, but the Act defines "employee" broadly as every person in the service of another under any contract of hire (820 ILCS 305/1(b)2), and the Commission decides status by the common-law right-to-control test with the Roberson v. Industrial Comm'n factors (right to control the manner of work, method of payment, right to discharge, who furnishes equipment, skill required, and whether the work is part of the hiring entity's regular business). A 1099 form and a contract label carry little weight. Sole proprietors and partners are not employees and are not covered unless they elect in (305/1(b)3); Illinois has no certificate or waiver of exemption for contractors. The contractor-under rule in 305/1(a)3 makes a hiring entity liable for an uninsured contractor's employees only in the extra-hazardous enterprises listed in Section 3, which do not include sports. No express WC or UI exclusion for sports officials: None found. UI uses the ABC test (820 ILCS 405/212), which is harder to satisfy than the WC test. Bottom line: 1099 referees who take game assignments freely and work for several leagues are usually outside WC, but coaches with set practice schedules, league-set pay and league equipment are at real risk of being found employees for WC and nearly certain employees for UI.
Seasonal or recreation carve-out: 820 ILCS 105 has no seasonal amusement/recreation or camp exemption and does not incorporate FLSA 13(a)(3); closest is OT-only 105/4a(2)(H) for staff of not-for-profit educational or residential child care institutions meeting pay thresholds.
Paid sick leave: Yes: Paid Leave for All Workers Act (any reason): 1 hr/40 hrs up to 40 hrs; part-time/seasonal covered (Chicago & Cook County separate ordinances)
Paid family and medical leave: No
What it costs to get it wrong: Employee Classification Act (construction): $1,000–$2,500 per violation; IDOL wage claims 5% monthly damages
Safety
Background checks: Partial: Park District Code 70 ILCS 1205/8-23: park districts must fingerprint-check (state + FBI) employees/volunteers with unsupervised child contact; Illinois Youth Sports Safety? None for private leagues statewide, check municipal/league policy. Sex offender registry check permitted (730 ILCS 152).
Safe sport: state law: No state safe-sport statute for private youth leagues; federal SafeSport Act baseline and NGB rules apply. Illinois has no law requiring private leagues, clubs, camps or tournaments to give coaches abuse-prevention training, adopt two-adult, one-on-one, electronic-communication, locker-room or travel policies, or distribute parent information sheets, and no statute adopts the SafeSport Code. The school-side framework is much stricter: Erin's Law (P.A. 97-1147, 105 ILCS 5/27-9.1a, 2013) requires sexual-abuse prevention education and policies in public schools, and Faith's Law (P.A. 102-676, eff. 2022, 105 ILCS 5/22-85 and 22-94) requires employment-history reviews and an educator code of conduct, but neither reaches non-school programs. Coach-relevant criminal law: 720 ILCS 5/11-1.60(f) elevates sexual conduct with a 13-17 year old by an adult who "holds a position of trust, authority or supervision" (coaches qualify), and 720 ILCS 5/12C-50 criminalizes hazing (12C-50.1 adds failure-to-report for school officials). No 2025-26 bill extending abuse-prevention duties to private leagues was located (checked Oct. 1, 2026). Cross-reference: park-district fingerprinting and coach mandated-reporter status with training (325 ILCS 5/4) are in the existing columns.
Safe sport: federal SafeSport Act and NGB rules: National baseline: the SafeSport Act (36 U.S.C. 220541-43, 18 U.S.C. 2258, Pub. L. 115-126 as amended by Pub. L. 116-189 in 2020, no later amendment found) binds NGBs and their member clubs in interstate competition to SafeSport Core training, MAAPP policies and 24-hour reporting to the Center and law enforcement. Illinois overlay: the federal 24-hour duty runs alongside Illinois's own mandated-reporter rule for "athletic program or facility personnel" (325 ILCS 5/4), which requires a DCFS hotline report and reporter training regardless of NGB membership, so NGB-affiliated clubs must satisfy both. Illinois does not make private non-NGB leagues follow MAAPP; IHSA coach requirements apply only to member-school coaches, so check the current IHSA handbook.
Concussion law: 105 ILCS 5/22-80 (Youth Sports Concussion Safety Act, 2015) schools; 70 ILCS 1205/8-24 park districts; 410 ILCS 155 Youth Sports Concussion Safety Act (private youth sports orgs must adopt IHSA-consistent policies); coaches training every 2 years; RTP clearance by physician/PA/APRN/athletic trainer.
Sudden cardiac arrest law: Yes (school), 105 ILCS 128/60 & 5/22-115: cardiac emergency response plans, coach CPR/AED training. Youth leagues not covered.
CPR and AED: AEDs at outdoor physical fitness facilities incl. park district ball fields (Physical Fitness Facility Medical Emergency Preparedness Act, 210 ILCS 74, as amended 2010); school coaches CPR/AED (105 ILCS 5/10-22.39). Private league coaches: none.
Coaches as mandated reporters: Coaches named: 325 ILCS 5/4 ('athletic program or facility personnel'); mandated reporter training required (325 ILCS 5/4(i)).
Coach certification: None statewide for non-school coaches.
Assault-on-official law: Yes: 720 ILCS 5/12-2(c)(5) aggravated assault & 12-3.05 aggravated battery against sports official.

All states

Rulebook by state

Illinois at a glance: minimum wage $15.00 (Chicago higher). Final paycheck when you let someone go: Next regular payday. Minimum working age: 14 (Child Labor Law of 2024, eff. 1/1/2025); 13+ golf caddying; 12-13 may officiate/assist-instruct youth sports for not-for-profit youth club, park district, township or municipal parks with a parent present. Background checks for youth sports: Partial: Park District Code 70 ILCS 1205/8-23: park districts must fingerprint-check (state + FBI) employees/volunteers with unsupervised child contact; Illinois Youth Sports Safety? None for private leagues statewide, check municipal/league policy. Sex offender registry check permitted (730 ILCS 152).