Private employers in California are not required to pay employees for jury duty. State law protects your job while you serve, but it does not protect your paycheck. Whether you get paid during jury service depends on your employer’s own policy, your classification as exempt or non-exempt, and whether you work for the government.
The Default Rule for Private Employers
No California statute obligates a private employer to pay wages during jury service.1Judicial Branch of California. Employer Information That applies to hourly workers and to salaried non-exempt workers alike. Plenty of employers do pay, sometimes for the full length of service and sometimes capped at a set number of days, but they do it as a voluntary benefit. Before you assume anything about your next paycheck, look at your employee handbook or ask HR directly.
Salaried Exempt Employees Are Treated Differently
If you’re classified as exempt under federal wage law, the answer flips. The Fair Labor Standards Act’s salary-basis rule requires that an exempt employee receive the full weekly salary for any week in which they perform any work. A few days away for jury duty doesn’t erase that obligation, so your employer generally cannot dock your salary for a partial-week jury absence.2eCFR. 29 CFR 541.602 – Salary Basis
One offset is allowed. Your employer may subtract the daily juror fee the court pays you from that week’s salary without breaking the salary-basis rule.2eCFR. 29 CFR 541.602 – Salary Basis If the court paid you $15 on Thursday and $15 on Friday, your employer can reduce that paycheck by $30. Beyond that small offset, full-day deductions from an exempt salary for jury service are a red flag worth raising with HR.
Government Employees
California state employees receive their regular pay during jury service under Government Code Section 19331, which authorizes jury duty leave with pay. In exchange, employees receiving their regular compensation waive the court’s daily juror fee, typically by completing a fee waiver form at the courthouse.3California Department of Human Resources. 2117 – Jury Duty Local government agencies and federal employers generally follow a similar pattern, though the exact policy varies by agency.
Can Your Employer Force You to Use PTO?
No. If your employer doesn’t offer paid jury leave, you may choose to use accrued vacation, personal leave, or PTO to keep your pay coming during service. But it’s your choice. An employer cannot compel you to burn PTO to cover a jury absence. If you’d rather take the days unpaid and hold onto your vacation balance, that’s your call. California treats accrued vacation as earned wages, and the decision about when to use those wages stays with you.
What the Court Pays Jurors
The state’s juror fee is small. California pays $15 per day for each day of attendance after the first day, plus $0.34 per mile for travel to and from the courthouse, also starting after the first day.4California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure CCP 215 The first day comes with no court compensation at all. A five-day trial would produce $60 in daily fees plus mileage. The amount hasn’t been raised in more than two decades. A 2023 legislative effort to increase pay for low-income jurors was vetoed by the governor.
Federal jury duty pays better. Federal courts pay $50 per day, with the amount increasing after ten days of service.
Your Job Is Protected Even When Your Pay Isn’t
The real force of California’s jury duty law is in Labor Code Section 230. Your employer cannot fire, threaten, demote, suspend, or discriminate against you for taking time off to serve on a jury.5California Legislative Information. California Labor Code 230 The protection covers trial and inquest juries and also extends to time needed to appear in court under a subpoena.
You don’t have to ask permission. Once you give reasonable advance notice and show your summons, the protection applies automatically. Tell your employer as soon as you receive the summons rather than the night before you report. Your employer can ask to see a copy of the summons, and after service ends it’s worth getting proof of the days you served from the court, since some employers require it to process leave or pay.1Judicial Branch of California. Employer Information
If Your Employer Retaliates
An employee fired, demoted, or otherwise punished for jury service is entitled to reinstatement to the former position and reimbursement for lost wages and benefits. An employer who willfully refuses to rehire or restore an employee after a determination of eligibility can be charged with a misdemeanor.5California Legislative Information. California Labor Code 230
You have two ways to pursue a claim. You can file a retaliation complaint with the California Labor Commissioner’s Office, also called the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement, under Labor Code Section 98.7.6California Department of Industrial Relations. File a Claim or Complaint The agency can investigate and order reinstatement and back wages. You can also file a civil lawsuit directly, seeking the same remedies plus any additional damages a court finds appropriate.
Federal jury duty carries its own layer. Under 28 U.S.C. § 1875, an employer who retaliates against an employee for federal jury service faces a civil penalty of up to $5,000 per violation, and the court can order reinstatement, lost wages, and community service. A successful claimant may also have counsel appointed and attorney’s fees awarded.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1875 – Protection of Jurors Employment