Published October 1, 2026
When people ask me about jury duty pay, they almost always mean two different things: what the court pays, and what their employer pays. The court's answer is simple and small: federal courts pay $50 a day, state courts pay anywhere from $5 to about $50. The employer's answer is where it gets interesting, because in most of the country the legal requirement is zero.
Every state requires employers to give you time off for jury duty, and every state prohibits firing or punishing you for serving. But "you may go" and "we will pay you" are different things. Only 10 jurisdictions require employers to pay wages during jury service, and even those come with limits.
The 10 jurisdictions that require employer pay
Alabama. Employers must pay full-time employees their regular wages for the entire period of jury service. No day cap, which means a long trial can get expensive for the employer.
Nebraska. Employers must pay normal wages, reduced by whatever the court pays the juror. Like Alabama, there is no time limit.
Tennessee. Employers must pay the employee's regular wages during jury service, with no statutory time cap.
Colorado. Employers must pay regular wages for the first 3 days of jury service, up to $50 per day.
Connecticut. Employers must pay full-time employees their regular wages for the first 5 days of service.
Massachusetts. Employers must pay regular wages for the first 3 days, unless the employer would face extreme financial hardship, in which case the state pays the juror up to $50 per day instead.
New York. Employers with 11 or more employees must pay the first $40 of the employee's daily wage for the first 3 days of service. Smaller employers are exempt from the pay requirement.
Louisiana. Employers must pay full wages for 1 day of jury service. After that, the obligation ends.
District of Columbia. Employers must pay employees their regular wages during jury service.
Florida (partial). This one is county-level, not statewide. Broward County and Miami-Dade County require employers to pay employees serving jury duty; Miami-Dade's rule applies to employees regularly scheduled to work at least 35 hours per week.
One more worth watching: Illinois will require employers with 26 or more employees to pay workers on jury duty leave starting January 1, 2027. If you are reading this in 2027, that law is live.
What about the other 40 states?
In the rest of the country, your employer must excuse you and cannot retaliate, but is not required to pay you a dime. Many employers pay anyway as a matter of policy, often for a set number of days, because it is cheap goodwill. Check your employee handbook before you assume the worst.
Eighteen states go one step further in your favor: they explicitly prohibit employers from forcing you to use vacation, sick time, or other paid leave to cover jury duty. That list includes Arizona, Arkansas, Indiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Utah, and Virginia, plus several of the pay-mandate states. In those states your PTO is protected even though your wages are not guaranteed.
The federal rule most salaried workers miss
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, if you are a salaried exempt employee and you do any work at all during the week, your employer must pay your full salary for that week, even if you spent most of it in a jury box. The employer can offset the jury fees you received against your salary, but cannot dock your pay for partial-week absence. If you serve a full week and do no work at all, the salary requirement does not apply. This is federal law and it applies in every state.
What to do before you serve
First, read your employer's jury duty policy; many companies are more generous than the law requires. Second, ask whether the company requires you to turn over your juror check (common when the company pays your salary). Third, if the pay gap would cause real hardship, talk to the court about a deferral or excuse before your service date, and bring documentation like pay stubs. Courts grant hardship excuses routinely for hourly workers and sole earners. Bring the paperwork and ask.
Frequently asked questions
Can my employer fire me for serving jury duty?
No. Federal law (28 U.S.C. Section 1875) makes it a crime to fire, threaten, or intimidate an employee for federal jury service, and every state has its own job-protection law. Document any retaliation and contact an employment attorney or your state labor agency.
Does my employer have to pay me if I am called but not selected?
In the mandate states, the pay requirement generally covers jury service including the selection process, subject to each state's day limits. Elsewhere it depends on company policy.
Can my employer make me use vacation days for jury duty?
In 18 states, no, that is explicitly prohibited. In the rest, it depends on state law and company policy. Many employers let you choose.
Estimate what the court itself will pay you.
The Jury Duty Pay Calculator estimates your total court pay by state, including daily rates and mileage, and shows whether your employer is required to pay you.