With Election Day fast approaching, the below overview highlights what employers need to know about state law voting rights.
Key considerations include knowing whether the applicable state law requires:
Employers to provide time off work to vote.
Employers to pay employees for time off work to vote.
Employees to notify employers if they intend to take time off work to vote.
Employers to provide time off work to volunteer on Election Day.
While there is little consistency among the states on these issues, only Alabama, California and New York require employers to post a notice about voting rights.
Is time off work to vote required?
Several states have no law addressing employee leave for voting, including Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Washington, D.C.
The remaining states have laws that allow employees leave from work to vote in certain circumstances. For instance, in California, an employee may have up to two hours at the beginning or end of a work shift to vote. In Alabama, an employer must allow an employee time off to vote unless the employee’s work shift starts two or more hours after polls open or the shift ends at least one hour before polls close. Massachusetts permits leave from work during the first two hours the polls are open. Other states have similar laws that require time off work to vote unless poll hours provide an opportunity to vote before or after a work shift. Even so, with the pandemic and potentially long lines at the polls, providing employees with some leeway is recommended.
No leave to vote required when work shift starts two or more hours after polls open or ends at least two hours before polls close:
Alaska
Georgia
Hawaii
Illinois
Kansas
Maryland
Nebraska
South Dakota
Texas
No leave to vote required when work shift starts two or more hours after polls open or ends at least three hours before polls close:
New Mexico
No leave to vote required when work shift starts four or more hours after polls open or ends at least four hours before polls close:
New York
No leave to vote required when work shift starts three or more hours after polls open or ends at least three hours before polls close:
Arizona
Colorado
Iowa
Missouri
Oklahoma
Tennessee
Utah
West Virginia
Wyoming
Leave to vote required without regard to work shift:
Arkansas
Kentucky
Maine
Minnesota
Nevada
New Hampshire
Ohio
Wisconsin
Is an employee paid for time off work to vote?
For states providing employees with time off to vote, many states require employers to pay employees for the time taken off work to vote.
States requiring paid time off to vote:
Alaska
Arizona
California*
Colorado*
Connecticut
Hawaii
Illinois
Iowa
Kansas
Maryland
Minnesota
Missouri
Nebraska
Nevada
New Mexico
New York*
Ohio^
Oklahoma
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
West Virginia
Wyoming
*Up to two hours
^Salaried employees only
Is an employee required to notify an employer or provide documentation when taking time off work to vote?
No notice or documentation required:
Alaska
Arkansas
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Hawaii
Idaho
Indiana
Kansas
Louisiana
Maine
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Montana
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Texas
Virginia
Washington
Wyoming
Reasonable notice or request made prior to election day:
Alabama
Arizona
Colorado
Georgia
Illinois
Iowa^
Kentucky
Massachusetts
Missouri*
Nebraska*
Nevada
Utah
Wisconsin
*To get paid
^In writing
Request for time off required:
By noon the day before Election Day: Tennessee
Two working days’ notice: California, New York
Three days’ notice: Oklahoma, West Virginia*
Seven days’ notice: Vermont
*Written request required
Is time off work to volunteer as an election worker permitted?
Some corporations are encouraging employee participation in the upcoming election and are revising workplace policies to provide employees with paid time off while volunteering at the polls.
The majority of states have no laws regarding volunteer work on Election Day.
State law protection for election volunteers — Notice required
Reasonable notice: Virginia
Seven days’ notice: Alabama, Wisconsin
20 days’ notice: Illinois, Minnesota
State law protection for election volunteers – No notice required
California
Delaware
Kentucky
Ohio
Download alert (opens a new window)Not legal advice: Nothing in this alert should be construed as legal advice. Lockton may not be considered your legal counsel, and communications with Lockton's HR Compliance Consulting group are not privileged under the attorney-client privilege.
