Two months after election, some Cook County poll workers still waiting for paychecks
Months after the November election, dozens - and perhaps hundreds - of Cook County election judges who worked the polls despite the health risks from the pandemic still haven't been paid.
That's according to one longtime Palatine judge who has kept in touch with other election judges responsible for setting up and running polling places throughout the Northwest suburbs.
But representatives of Cook County Clerk Karen Yarbrough, who runs suburban elections, responded Tuesday that the majority of individuals who worked as election judges already have been paid.
Dianna Rushing, a retired flight attendant who has worked elections the past 15 years, said she received some compensation from the clerk's office but is still waiting for another check for the three days she spent setting up an early voting polling place inside the courthouse in Rolling Meadows. She also helped run the early voting site in downtown Palatine and processed mail ballots in the weeks after Election Day.
This week, she submitted a list of nearly a dozen names of poll workers who haven't been paid to Cook County Commissioner Scott Britton, in hopes of expediting the process. Rushing said many of their calls and emails to the clerk's office have gone unanswered.
Those who have gotten a response were told the clerk's office is looking into the situation, or that their check is in the mail, Rushing said. Normally, they're paid within 30 days.
"We're at two months past Nov. 3, and enough's enough," she said. "I'm out there to try to get the ball rolling to get someone - or many - to look into this and put pressure on Cook County to do the right thing. If I know personally of this many people in just my area, I will guarantee you there are hundreds of judges who have not been paid."
Sally Daly, a clerk's office spokeswoman, said checks were mailed to about 6,600 judges - a majority of poll workers - within two weeks of the election. More than 300 payments were mailed last week, she added.
Election judges are eligible to earn $200 for working on Election Day. More experienced polling place technicians who have additional training to set up and maintain voting equipment can earn up to $365.
Some, like Rushing, work during early voting and do other tasks, putting them above a $600 threshold that triggers tax withholding and a pension deduction, though they are not full-time county employees.
Since 2019, the clerk's office has asked election judges to fill out a series of tax forms, including a pension beneficiary form, before getting paid.
Daly said judges need to complete those forms to comply with Internal Revenue Service codes. She said any election worker who hasn't completed the forms should contact the clerk's office for further instructions so that their payments can be issued.
Though many judges already filled out those forms, Rushing said some were asked to do it again this year, which she believes could account for the delayed paychecks.
"People step forward to do this because we want to do our civic duties, we want to serve our communities and we want to do what's right," Rushing said. "And unfortunately, many judges have said they'll never do this again."