California: Jury Duty Leave and Pay Requirements
The short answer
California protects an employee who takes time off as required by law to serve on an inquest or trial jury, and an employer may not interfere with or discriminate against the employee for using that right. The employee must give reasonable advance notice unless that is infeasible and may use otherwise-available vacation, personal leave, paid sick leave, or compensatory time, but California does not generally require a private employer to pay wages during jury service. Violations are unlawful employment practices enforceable through the Civil Rights Department and FEHA's civil-action process.
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This is the general rule in California. Ezel applies current California law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law | Cal. Gov. Code §§ 12945.8(a)(1), (c)(1), (f)-(g), (j)(3) and 12965(c); former Cal. Labor Code § 230 applies only to alleged acts/omissions on or before Dec. 31, 2024 |
|---|---|
| Jury service covered | Time off required by law for an inquest jury or trial jury (§ 12945.8(a)(1)); witness/subpoena leave appears separately in the same section but is outside this topic |
| Employers and employees covered | Any person directly employing one or more people for wages or salary, plus state and local government employers; no tenure, full-time, or permanent-employee limit stated (§ 12945.8(j)(3)) |
| Time-off entitlement | Employer may not discharge or discriminate for required jury-service time off and may not interfere with, restrain, or deny the right or attempted exercise (§ 12945.8(a)(1), (f)) |
| Employer-paid wages | No general private-employer wage-continuation requirement; California Judicial Branch states employers are not required by law to compensate employees during jury service |
| PTO and juror-fee treatment | Employee may use otherwise-available vacation, personal leave, paid sick leave, or comp time; statute does not expressly authorize compelled PTO use. If employer pays, official court guidance says court-paid juror funds are refundable by employee to employer (§ 12945.8(g)) |
| Employee notice and proof | Reasonable advance notice of intended jury-service leave unless advance notice is infeasible (§ 12945.8(c)(1)); no jury-specific summons-copy requirement stated |
| Scheduling and return-to-work rules | No general statutory night-shift rest window, minimum release period, or same-day return rule in § 12945.8 |
| Job protection and remedies | Interference or discrimination is an unlawful employment practice; employee may complain to CRD and, after the statutory notice process, sue under FEHA, with court relief and discretionary prevailing-party fees/costs (§§ 12945.8(f), 12965(c)) |
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Protected time off, but no general employer pay
California now places its operative jury-leave protection in Government Code
§ 12945.8. An employer may not discharge or discriminate against an employee
for taking time off “to serve as required by law on an inquest jury or trial
jury,” and interference with the right or an attempt to exercise it is itself
an unlawful employment practice.
The statute protects the absence; it does not promise wage continuation. The
California Judicial Branch confirms that employers are not legally required to
compensate employees while they serve, although an employer policy or
collective-bargaining agreement may provide paid jury leave.
Notice and available paid leave
The employee must give “reasonable advance notice” of the intended absence
unless advance notice is infeasible. Section 12945.8 does not impose a fixed
number of days and does not state a jury-specific requirement to hand the
employer a copy of the summons.
The employee may use vacation, personal leave, paid sick leave, or compensatory
time that is otherwise available under the terms of employment. The section
does not expressly authorize an employer to force exhaustion of those balances.
If the employer voluntarily pays wages, the Judicial Branch says court-paid
juror funds are refundable by the employee to the employer; the court does not
reimburse the employer directly.
Coverage and enforcement
For this section, “employer” includes a person directly employing one or more
people for wages or salary, as well as state and local public employers
(§ 12945.8(j)(3)). The jury paragraph does not impose a full-time, tenure, or
permanent-employee gate.
A violation is an unlawful employment practice within the FEHA enforcement
system. The California Judicial Branch directs affected employees to the Civil
Rights Department. After the statutory administrative notice process, an
aggrieved person may bring a civil action after the notice described in
§ 12965(c)(1)(D); superior courts have jurisdiction, and § 12965 permits
discretionary attorney's fees and costs under its stated prevailing-party
standard.
What trips people up
Labor Code § 230 is no longer the current cite for new jury-leave conduct. Its
current subsection (k) says the section applies only to alleged actions or
inactions occurring on or before December 31, 2024. Government Code § 12945.8
is the operative provision for later conduct. A handbook, article, or form that
still cites only Labor Code § 230 is using the former location.
The words “may use” paid leave also should not be rewritten as mandatory paid
jury leave. California lets the employee draw on available balances but does
not generally require the private employer to continue wages.
Common questions
Does California require a company to pay an employee during jury duty?
No general California law requires a private employer to replace wages during
jury service. An employer policy or collective-bargaining agreement may do so.
How much notice must the employee give?
Reasonable advance notice, unless advance notice is infeasible. The statute
does not set a fixed day count.
Does the law protect only full-time employees?
No full-time or tenure limit appears in the jury paragraph, and the section's
employer definition reaches a person directly employing one or more people for
wages or salary.
Is witness leave the same right?
No. Section 12945.8 separately protects specified court appearances as a
witness, but this survey compares employees summoned for or serving on juries.
Statutes and sources
- Cal. Gov. Code § 12945.8(a)(1), (c)(1), (f)-(g), (j)(3): current jury leave,
notice, available paid leave, interference rule, and employer definition —
official text
(accessed July 12, 2026). - Cal. Gov. Code § 12965(c): FEHA civil-action jurisdiction and fee provision —
official text
(accessed July 12, 2026). - Cal. Labor Code § 230(k): former section limited to alleged conduct through
December 31, 2024 —
official text
(accessed July 12, 2026). - California Judicial Branch: employer-pay and court-payment guidance —
official guidance
(accessed July 12, 2026).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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