Election Day Right to Vote for Employees

Thursday, September 24, 2020

Election Day—Tuesday, November 3, 2020—is shortly approaching, and staff would possibly ask for day off to vote. Employers that merely say “no” to their staff may be violating Texas legislation.

Texas staff have a proper to take paid day off to vote on Election Day. The Texas Election Code mandates that an worker have to be given paid day off to vote if the polls shut on Election Day inside “two consecutive hours outdoors of the voter’s working hours.” For instance, if an worker’s workday is scheduled to finish at 5:30 p.m. on Election Day, and if the polls shut at 7:00 p.m., then the worker is entitled to depart work at 5:00 p.m. to go vote and to obtain 30 minutes of paid depart. To keep away from being short-staffed on the finish of Election Day, employers can counsel, however not demand, that staff attempt to vote early to allow them to keep away from lengthy wait occasions on the polls or dangerous climate.

The paid day off to vote is protected by legislation, so employers could not refuse to offer day off when staff are entitled to take it, threaten staff for making an attempt to take it, or impose penalties upon staff who take the day off to vote. Offering paid day off applies to all staff, together with exempt and non-exempt staff.

Along with having the best to vote, Texas staff are shielded from retaliation relating to how they vote. It’s a felony to retaliate in opposition to an worker who voted for or in opposition to a specific candidate or measure, or who refuses to disclose how she or he voted. The anti-retaliation safety protects staff from precise or threatened “loss or discount of wages or one other advantage of employment.”

Employers with staff in different states could discover that there’s a good likelihood that these staff are additionally protected by related legal guidelines, since greater than half of the states have voting depart necessities.