The Labor Code section 230 governs the California law on paid jury duty leave. The law makes it clear that employers should accord employees the freedom and time to attend jury duty. In doing so, the employers should desist from subjecting the employees to discrimination, intimidation or disciplinary action. Employees furnished with summon papers by a court to act as witnesses ought to inform their employers beforehand about their intention to undertake jury duty. Employers should verify the employees have the mandate to attend jury duty by soliciting for the necessary documentation.

How jury duty leave is paid

The issue that persists in the minds of employees is whether they will receive salary while on jury service. Well, this issue is multidimensional and dictated by a number of factors.

The organization’s policy

An organization may have a policy in place that ensures employees are paid for duty service. If such a policy does not exist, an employee does not receive any pay since an employer is not obliged to do so.

States’ laws and policies

Some states have a provision that guarantees payment of employees while on jury duty leave. Paid jury duty leave differs from one state to another. For instance, in states such as Alabama, District of Columbia, Colorado and Tennessee, employees receive paid jury duty leave though it has some variations. Full time employees in Alabama receive their regular pay even when on jury service. On the other hand, full time employees in District of Columbia receive their normal salary for the initial five days of jury duty.

Nonexempt employees

An employer’s nonexempt, hourly employees are not entitled to payment in the course of jury duty. No payment is extended during the entire period that they do not work. They are only paid if they make use of their accrued paid time off. However, a union agreement or a contract may compel an employer to pay a nonexempt employee while on jury duty.

Exempt employees

An employer has an obligation to pay exempt employees for all the days they implement their assigned duties. However, there are situations when an employer can withhold payment for an exempt employee. Such situations can arise if jury duty interferes with an employee’s capacity to undertake work related tasks for an entire week.

In conclusion, it is crucial for employers to formulate jury duty leave policies that aim at fairness of all employees. This is because employees are citizens thus have a responsibility to participate in the legal process whenever required to do so. As for employees who are not sufficiently conversant with jury duty policies, seeking the counsel of California labor lawyers helps in deeply understanding the matter.

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Taking time off for jury duty has become a subject of great debate among many employers. Some employers are reluctant to provide jury duty leave to their employees. All employees should give a time off to their employees upon to serve as witness or jurors if summoned to appear for trials. In this case, the employers should not discriminate or punish the employees for their jury duty. Moreover, some states prohibit the employers from intimidating employees who want to serve as jurors. In most cases, the employees are required to provide their employers with a proof that they were called for jury duty.

Should employers compensate employees for jury duty? 

This is the main question asked by most employees who want to take time off to provide jury duty services. Unless the employer’s terms state otherwise, most employees are not entitled to any payment during jury duty leave. However, some states require to employees to give some compensation for the jury duty. In some cases, the employees are allowed to use their accrued paid leave to serve on the jury. In addition, workers on the night shift may get time off from work if they are working on jury duty during the day.

Should employee postpone their jury services? 

For employees who have a tight schedule, the courts can allow them to postpone their jury service until the convenient time. Usually, this postponement can be up to six months from the first date. In this case, the employee will select the time which is more convenient to serve on a jury.

Are employers allowed to communicate with employees during the trial? 

The employers are not barred from communicating with the employees during the trial. However, this should be done during the trial recess the discretion of the employee. Remember that employers are strictly prohibited from communicating with their employees about the trial.

Do states reimburse employers who compensate their employees for the jury services? 

Usually, the courts reimburse the jurors who are not compensated by their employers. If the employers compensate their employees for jury services, the employee will directly refund the funds paid by the courts to the employer. In this case, the court will not directly refund the money to the employer.

Conclusion 

Jury duty plays a vital role in the country legal system. In this case, the laws have been made to protect the jurors from intimidation and harassment by employers. Therefore, those who want to serve as jurors should discharge their duties without fear of being terminated by their respective employers.

Keep in mind that policy regarding jury duty leave differs from state to state and also by company. Consult HR or your employee handbook to make sure you know your company’s policy.

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Jury duty is often dreaded by employees due to the frequent negative interaction it can cause employers that are not familiar with the law. The desire for employers to operate in a normal fashion can leave the employee at odds with the jurisdiction that has legally summoned their presence. Below is a look at jury duty leave laws and how to avoid confusion in what is required of employers.

Requirements of Jury Duty Leave Law in California

Employers are legally responsible to provide the time needed for employees to answer to a summons for jury duty and partake in this civic duty without encumbrance, harassment or threat of being fired. Any breach of this can bring about misdemeanor charges and fines. Employers are not required to reimburse an employee for lost time resulting from jury duty unless they are paid a set salary. The employer will be required to pay the employee the same weekly amount regardless under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Benefits of Encouraging Civic Duty Participation 

Every business should have a policy in place to handle jury duty. It is better to be upfront and clear with employees as to what your expectations are and what you are willing to reimburse. It will also serve to put an employee on notice that they need to let you know as early as possible so that you can make arrangements for their absence.

Will I Be Reimbursed For Compensating Employees For Jury Duty? 

Many employers opt to compensate employees for serving on a jury, even though it is not required. This is something that any employee can appreciate and will help cultivate company loyalty, but there is rarely an instance when you will receive reimbursement. The employee is required to reimburse you for any funds they have received for jury duty if you compensate their pay, but the courts will not offer any reimbursement to employers.

Can Employees Postpone Jury Duty For A Better Time? 

There are seasonal industries that the courts will help accommodate by allowing an employee to postpone jury duty for as long as six months. The employee will have the option of choosing the new, more agreeable date.

What If My Company Cannot Afford To Be Without The Employee? 

The courts do understand that it is difficult to run operations with missing critical employees, but they expect that arrangements can be made to be without them for one to seven days, or the duration of their jury duty deployment.

Can I Contact An Employee During Jury Duty? 

There is no reason that an employee and employer cannot remain in communication during the jury duty process. The only requirements are that the employee cannot discuss the trial with an employer.

What If My Employee Is Released After A Half-Day? 

If the employee contacts you and they have not spent the entire day in jury service, you can request that they finish the day at the job site. As long as it is practical for the employer to make it to the business in a reasonable time you can ask them to work the remainder of the day.

You can feel good about helping serve your community by allowing all employees to take jury duty leave when needed. This is an easy way to help ensure the court system is operating smoothly and that everyone has the opportunity to have their voice heard by a jury of their peers.

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Law protects employees from being punished or fired by employers for taking leave of work to serve jury duty. Employers are also restricted from trying to discourage or intimidate employees from serving on a jury. They are allowed to require proof from employees that there was called in for jury duty before they are allowed time off work.

Jury Selection Process

Whether or not the juror knows any of the defendants, witnesses, victims, experts or investigators in the case or if you happen to have any particular knowledge about the case not publicly known.

After these questions are asked and answered, the jury pool is whittled down. The next step is the judge and attorneys for both sides of the case will decide upon the first twelve jurors who satisfy their requirements.

If necessary, the court may decide it is prudent to select some alternates. These back-ups are treated like jurors and listen to all the evidence presented in the case. They do not participate in the actual deliberations unless something prevents one of the original jurors from completing their duty.

Once the jurors are selected, the judge will explain what is expected of them. The judge will probably go over housekeeping items such as if the juror needs a break during the trial, what they can bring into the jury box, how long they have for lunch and what time they are to report each day.
How Long Are Trials?
Most local trials only last a day. Some jurisdictions have made the determination that if you are placed on a jury during the time you are “on call” you have satisfied your commitment and are released from coming back for a period.

During the actual trial, you’ll sit in a designated box and are expected to listen to all the testimony before forming an opinion. Some jurisdictions allow note taking, put provide you the notebooks and pencils as you are entering and leaving the courtroom and collect them as you leave. Some jurisdictions are concerned that people won’t pay close attention and have disallowed note taking.
Who Gives The Jury’s Decision
A foreperson is either determined by the court or elected by the other jurors. This person is the voice of the entire jury and will be responsible for communicating to the court via the bailiff if they can’t hear the testimony, can’t see the visual evidence, it’s too warm or cool, they need a break, etc.

The foreman is also responsible for passing along any information from the court to the jurors. For example, making sure everyone as signed the attendance form and fill out the necessary paperwork to receive their daily stipend.
Is There Any Downtime?
The jury only hears testimony and attorney comments which the judge deems appropriate to the case at hand. Any other information which the judge feels will be prejudicial to the defendant will be discussed while the jury is outside the courtroom. These periods can be short or long depending upon what is discussed.

This is an opportunity for jurors to talk among themselves about anything not related to the case. This is also a good time for a juror to read the paper or book, balance a checkbook, set up doctor’s appointments, etc.

While jury duty can be inconvenient, it can also be a wonderful educational experience in how the judicial system works.

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