Jury Duty Leave and Pay Requirements in New York
At a glance
| Governing law | N.Y. Jud. Law §§ 501, 519, 521, 750(A)(7), and 751(1); current §§ 519 and 521 reflect the June 13, 2025 increase from $40 to $72 |
|---|---|
| Jury service covered | A person summoned as a grand or petit juror in a court of New York's unified court system, including courts of record and courts not of record (§§ 501, 519); the state section does not extend its terms to federal jury service |
| Employers and employees covered | Job protection applies without an employer-size or full-time limit; the wage floor applies only when the employer has more than 10 employees. Unified Court System guidance applies the pay rules to part-time workers and specified temporary workers |
| Time-off entitlement | After pre-service notice, the employee may be absent for the jury-service term without discharge or penalty (§ 519); official court guidance says the employer must allow the time off |
| Employer-paid wages | More than 10 employees: cannot withhold the first $72 of daily wages for the first 3 days, effectively the lower of $72 or the employee's missed daily wage. Ten or fewer employees, and all employers after day 3: no state employer-wage requirement (§ 519) |
| PTO and juror-fee treatment | Employer may not force vacation, personal, or sick leave; employee may choose paid leave. The state juror allowance fills the gap to $72 when required employer wages are lower and is unavailable for a scheduled workday when wages are not withheld (§ 521; court guidance) |
| Employee notice and proof | Employee must notify the employer before the jury-service term begins (§ 519); no fixed number of days, written-form rule, or summons-copy requirement stated. The court supplies proof of service on request |
| Scheduling and return-to-work rules | No forced make-up days; no full evening or night shift after reporting or serving a full jury day. A schedule change may accommodate service but may not penalize the employee (Unified Court System guidance applying § 519) |
| Job protection and remedies | Discharge or another penalty is criminal contempt (§§ 519, 750(A)(7)); court may impose up to a $1,000 fine, up to 30 days in jail, or both (§ 751(1)). Pending A2533-A/S9773 would add Labor Law civil penalties and an employee civil action |
Protected absence and the three-day pay floor
New York Judiciary Law § 519 protects a person summoned under the state's jury article after the employee notifies the employer before the term of service begins. The employee may not be discharged or penalized for the resulting absence. Section 501 makes the article applicable to grand and petit jurors throughout New York's unified court system, including courts that are not courts of record.
The protection does not make every day fully paid. An employer with more than 10 employees may not withhold the first $72 of the employee's daily wages for the first three days. If the missed daily wage is below $72, the employer pays that lower wage and the state allowance supplies the difference under § 521(a)-(b). An employer with 10 or fewer employees may withhold wages, and beginning on day four any employer may do so; the separate state juror allowance may then apply.
Paid leave, proof, and work schedules
The Unified Court System treats forced use of vacation, personal, or sick time as an illegal penalty under § 519. The employee may choose available paid leave instead of losing wages. The same guidance says an employer may not force make-up work on a normally unscheduled day and may not require a full evening or night shift after the employee reported or served for a full jury day. A schedule adjustment designed to accommodate service is permitted, but one designed to penalize the employee is not.
Section 519 requires notice before the service term begins but sets no fixed day count and does not require a particular written form or a copy of the summons. The court handbook says a juror may request proof showing the dates served.
Enforcement
A violation of § 519 is criminal contempt. Section 750(A)(7) expressly reaches an employer's discharge or penalty because of jury-service absence, and § 751(1) authorizes a fine up to $1,000, imprisonment up to 30 days, or both. Current law does not add the broader Labor Law civil-remedy package proposed in pending A2533-A/S9773.
What trips people up
Older official court pages still reproduce the former $40 figure. The current Senate text of §§ 519 and 521 shows a June 13, 2025 revision and says $72. The Unified Court System's revised June 2025 employer handbook also uses $72.
The employer-size line changes who pays, not whether the absence is protected. An employer with 10 or fewer employees may withhold wages, but still may not discharge or penalize the employee for covered service.
New York's state provision is written for a person summoned under Judiciary Law article 16. Section 501 limits that article to grand and petit jurors in New York's unified court system; separate federal law governs employment protection for federal jury service.
Common questions
Does a New York employer have to pay the employee's full wage?
No. For the first three days, an employer with more than 10 employees owes the lower of $72 or the employee's missed daily wage. New York does not require that employer to replace earnings above $72.
Can an employer make the employee use PTO?
No. The Unified Court System says forced vacation, personal, or sick time is an illegal penalty. The employee may elect paid leave.
Does the employee have to provide the summons?
Section 519 requires notice before the term starts but does not require a copy of the summons. A juror can request proof of service from the court.
Can a night-shift employee be sent to work after court?
Not for a full evening or night shift after reporting or serving for a full jury day, according to the Unified Court System's employer guidance.
Statutes and sources
- N.Y. Jud. Law § 501: article 16 applies to grand and petit jurors throughout the unified court system — official text (accessed July 13, 2026).
- N.Y. Jud. Law § 519: protected absence, advance notice, employer pay, and criminal contempt — official text (accessed July 13, 2026).
- N.Y. Jud. Law § 521: $72 state allowance and coordination with employer wages — official text (accessed July 13, 2026).
- N.Y. Jud. Law §§ 750(A)(7) and 751(1): contempt coverage and punishment — § 750 and § 751 (accessed July 13, 2026).
- New York State Unified Court System, Jury Information for Employers, revised June 2025: pay administration, PTO, proof, and scheduling — official handbook (accessed July 13, 2026).
- A2533-A/S9773: proposed Labor Law remedies and current legislative action — official Assembly bill record (checked September 19, 2026).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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