Jury duty leave seems like an easy one, but anything that involves questions about who gets paid and who doesn’t is not so easy. In yesterday’s Advisor we talked about the legal issues surrounding jury duty and appearance as a witness; today, we’ll look at key policy considerations, and get an introduction to the “Employee Leave Bible.”
Most employers believe that an employee has a civic responsibility to serve when called as a juror or witness. In fact, according to BLR’s Survey of Employee Benefits, over 40 percent of employers place no limit on the amount of leave allowed for jury duty per year, and an additional 28 percent allow over 2 weeks per year.
However, it can be difficult to develop a policy that strikes a balance between supporting the civic obligation and at the same time protecting the organization from the loss of a valuable person at a crucial time. Your policy on leave of absence for jury or witness duty should be in writing and be communicated to employees by way of a company policy booklet or a workplace posting. When developing your policy, consider the following points.
Is your policy in legal compliance?
You will want to ensure that your policy meets the minimum requirements of federal and any applicable state laws. If you do business in several states with differing rights for leave for jury or witness duty, you may want to maintain a consistent policy in all of your facilities by following the law with the most generous provisions for the employees.
What notification procedures will you require?
When an employee receives instructions to report for jury or witness duty, whom should the employee notify and when? Is verbal notification sufficient?
What documentation will you require?
Must the employee present a copy of the subpoena or other document instructing him or her to report? Must the employee afterward present documentation of the dates of service?
What compensation will you offer?
The most common practice is to pay employees the difference between their regular pay and any compensation they receive from the court system. Also, decide whether you want to place a limit on how long the employee will be paid—for example, 2 weeks per calendar year—and whether different groups of employees—hourly, salaried, probationary—will be compensated in the same manner.
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Will you require a return to work after early release?
If you voluntarily continue to pay an employee on jury or witness duty, it is reasonable to require the employee to report back to work if released before 12 noon by the court; early releases occur frequently. Consider if second- and third-shift employees will be excused from work for the whole day.
Should you request a postponement?
Under what circumstances will your organization ask that a particular employee be excused from witness or jury duty or that jury duty be postponed? Who must approve these requests? You don’t want employees to be excused from duty under any but the most pressing circumstances, so try to pinpoint the areas in which an employee’s unexpected absence for a prolonged period of time is most likely to disrupt operations.
Since leave requests often come up unexpectedly, it’s best to answer these tricky policy questions beforehand to eliminate confusion and resentment. And it’s no different for the most annoying leave law of all, the Family and Medical Leave Act.
It’s an almost overwhelming task to keep up with the old FMLA, let alone comply with the recent, far-reaching changes and then the complexity of marrying all that with state law provisions. Good news! BLR’s editors have gone the extra mile to get your comprehensive compliance guide up to date.
BLR’s recently updated Family and Medical Leave Act Compliance Guide—the book some are calling the “FMLA Bible”—simplifies the frustrating and confusing complexities of the FMLA, so you know exactly how to comply in every situation.
It contains practical answers to all the FMLA questions you are asking—and the ones you haven’t thought of but should be asking.
A whirlwind of changes has hit the FMLA—are you ready to comply? Order BLR’s comprehensive guidebook and find out what you need to do. You’ll get expert FMLA guidance, forms, and concrete examples. Find out more.
The Family and Medical Leave Act Compliance Guide includes:
- Leave law overview
- All the new forms and advice on how to use them
- Practical guidance on implementing all aspects of the new rules
- Analysis of federal and state laws, what they require, and how they interact
- Leave circumstances, coverage, and eligibility—for FMLA, ADA, workers’ comp, and military leave
- Recordkeeping and reporting requirements
- Reasonable accommodation
- Sample policies and forms
- Plus a quarterly newsletter and updates to make sure you stay in compliance as any changes come about
Get more information or order your copy of the Family and Medical Leave Act Compliance Guide.