Jury Duty Leave and Pay Requirements in Kansas
At a glance
| Governing law | Kan. Stat. Ann. § 43-173 (jury service; right to serve; liability; costs) |
|---|---|
| Jury service covered | Jury service, and the attendance or scheduled attendance in connection with such service, in any court of Kansas (§ 43-173(a)); the section is limited to Kansas courts and to 'permanent' employees |
| Employers and employees covered | Protects any 'permanent employee'; § 43-173 states no employer-size gate, but its protection runs to permanent (not temporary) employees |
| Time-off entitlement | The absence for jury service and the scheduled attendance connected to it is protected: no employer may discharge or threaten to discharge a permanent employee because of it (§ 43-173(a)). The section bars retaliatory discharge rather than fixing a quantity of leave |
| Employer-paid wages | None. Section 43-173 requires no wage continuation; it protects the job, not a paycheck during service |
| PTO and juror-fee treatment | Section 43-173 does not authorize compelling use of vacation, personal, or sick leave for jury days, and does not address crediting the court's juror fee against any wages an employer chooses to pay |
| Employee notice and proof | Section 43-173 imposes no express advance-notice period, written-notice form, or summons-copy requirement on the employee |
| Scheduling and return-to-work rules | No shift-rest window, night-shift excusal, minimum-release period, or long-trial rule appears in § 43-173, though it does protect 'scheduled attendance' connected to jury service |
| Job protection and remedies | A violating employer is liable for lost wages, actual damages, and other benefits; must reinstate the discharged employee; and may be enjoined and ordered to provide other relief. A reinstated employee is treated as having been on leave of absence, keeps seniority, and retains benefit participation. A prevailing employee may be awarded reasonable attorney fees; a prevailing employer only if the action was frivolous or in bad faith (§ 43-173(b)-(d)) |
Protected job, unpaid time
Kansas's rule for employees called to jury service is Kan. Stat. Ann. § 43-173. No employer may discharge or threaten to discharge any permanent employee because of the employee's jury service, or the attendance or scheduled attendance connected to that service, in any court of Kansas. Two limits are built into the text: the protection runs to permanent employees (not temporary ones), and it is tied to service in Kansas courts.
What the section does not do is require the employer to pay wages. Kansas is a protected-but-unpaid state. An employer policy or union contract may provide paid jury leave, but the statute does not command it.
PTO, notice, and scheduling
Section 43-173 does not let an employer force an employee to use vacation, personal, or sick leave for the jury days, and it does not address crediting the court's juror fee against any wages the employer chooses to pay. Those choices are left to the employer's policy.
The section sets no advance-notice deadline, requires no particular written notice, and does not spell out a right to produce a copy of the summons. It has no rule about shift rest, release time, or long trials, though its protection of "scheduled attendance" connected to jury service reaches the days an employee is required to be on call for a panel.
Enforcement and reinstatement
Kansas backs the protection with a strong reinstatement remedy. An employer that violates the section is liable for lost wages, actual damages, and other benefits; must reinstate a discharged employee; and may be enjoined from further violations and ordered to provide other appropriate relief. A reinstated employee is treated as having been on furlough or leave of absence during the jury service — so the employee returns without loss of seniority and keeps the right to participate in insurance and other benefits on the same terms as employees on leave.
On costs, a prevailing employee who brings the action through retained counsel may recover reasonable attorney fees. A prevailing employer may recover fees only if the court finds the employee's action frivolous or brought in bad faith.
What trips people up
The "permanent employee" limit matters. A temporary or seasonal worker does not have the § 43-173 discharge protection, so the practical strength of the statute depends on the employee's status.
The statute is also about the job, not the paycheck. It guarantees reinstatement, seniority, and benefit continuity for a wrongful discharge, but it does not turn jury service into paid time — the employer owes no wages for the days served unless its own policy provides them.
Common questions
Can a Kansas employer fire me for serving on a jury?
No. Discharging or threatening to discharge a permanent employee because of jury service or scheduled attendance for it in a Kansas court violates § 43-173.
Does my employer have to pay me?
Not under this statute. Kansas does not require wage continuation for jury service, though an employer may choose to pay.
What do I get if I win a wrongful-discharge claim?
Reinstatement without loss of seniority, lost wages and other benefits, continued benefit participation, and possibly reasonable attorney fees.
Am I protected if I am a temporary employee?
The section's discharge protection is written for permanent employees, so a temporary worker may not have this specific statutory protection.
Statutes and sources
- Kan. Stat. Ann. § 43-173: bars discharging or threatening a permanent employee over jury service in a Kansas court, requires reinstatement with seniority and benefit continuity, and provides lost-wage damages, injunctions, and attorney fees — Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes official text (accessed July 13, 2026); cross-checked against the Justia 2025 Kansas Statutes mirror.
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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