Illinois Employers Face New Paid Leave for Jury Service + Stronger Protections for Volunteer Emergency Workers

Takeaways

• All Illinois employers are required to provide jury duty leave. Starting 01.01.27, Illinois employers with at least 26 employees must provide employees with paid leave for jury service. 
• Also starting 01.01.27, employers cannot penalize volunteer emergency workers who are absent from or late to work because they were responding to emergencies or participating in required training. 
• Employees cannot be required to use accrued paid time off while serving jury duty or participating in volunteer emergency services activities.

Related links

• Public Act 104-0683
• Public Act 104-0581

Article

Illinois has enacted two laws that expand employee protections beginning Jan. 1, 2027. Gov. JB Pritzker signed an amendment to both the state’s Jury Act and Jury Commission Act to provide employees with paid leave for jury service (HB 4844; Public Act 104-0683). He also signed an amendment to the Volunteer Emergency Worker Job Protection Act to provide additional employment protections for employees when responding to emergencies or attending training required for service as a volunteer emergency worker (HB1353; Public Act 104-0581).

Paid Leave for Jury Service

The Illinois Jury Act and Jury Commission Act require all Illinois employers, regardless of size, to provide eligible employees with job-protected leave for jury service. Eligible employees are those who have not been disqualified from sitting on juries and have been duly summoned for jury duty in any Illinois court. The acts also prohibit all Illinois employers from discharging, intimidating, or coercing employees because of their jury service or attendance or scheduled attendance in court. Previously, employers were not required to pay employees for the job-protected leave. Beginning Jan. 1, 2027, Illinois employers with at least 26 employees will be required to “compensate eligible employees at their regular rate of pay for time serving on jury duty.”

Enhanced Protections for Volunteer Emergency Workers

Starting Jan. 1, 2027, volunteer emergency workers (as defined in the law) in Illinois cannot be discharged or otherwise penalized for participating in training required for their volunteer emergency work.

The Volunteer Worker Job Protection Act, as amended, will also prohibit employers from not only discharging but penalizing volunteer emergency workers who are absent from or late to work because they responded to an emergency.

The amendment also prohibits employers from requiring volunteer emergency workers to use vacation time or other compensatory time to respond to emergencies or participate in required training.

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If you have any questions or need assistance reviewing and updating your policies to comply with these changes, please contact a Jackson Lewis attorney.