Legal Question in Employment Law in Illinois

Not necessarily. Depends on several things -- even some collective bargaining agreements w/ unions require workers to have their own tools, shoes, etc. And without a collective bargaining agreement it is usually up to company policy and your understanding of the work arrangements -- meaning your work "contract" with your company. At the same time you should get to keep any tools you need to buy and to write tools off that you have to replace, however, for your personal taxes. If this is a small company where rules are what the boss says they are, however, it may be a question of whether the boss is consistent. It may also depend on whether the boss is making you buy certain particular brands or kinds of tools as opposed to your choice. If there is an employee manual or handbook, that should spell things out for you. If there is any kind of HR department or person, they, he or she should be able to point to something that spells this out.