Jury Duty: Delaware

This Jury Duty policy applies to employees in Delaware and is designed to align with Delaware's juror protections and jury service requirements under Title 10 of the Delaware Code, including Chapter 45 (Juries). It sets clear expectations for notifying your organization, staying in touch during service, and returning to work when not required to be in court, while also explaining how pay works for exempt and non-exempt employees. It also reinforces a core compliance point for Delaware employers: employees must be able to serve without fear of termination, threats, or coercion for responding to a summons or performing jury service.

The History Behind Jury Duty Policies in Delaware

This Jury Duty policy tracks a long-running set of rules around Court Appearances & Civic Duty that treat jury service as a public obligation, not a workplace favor. Delaware built those rules into Title 10, Chapter 45 of the Delaware Code, which lays out who can be summoned, how juries get formed, and how service works in practice.

Delaware law also added remedies to deter workplace pressure related to jury service. Chapter 45 includes protections that prohibit employers from discharging or threatening an employee because they receive a jury summons or serve as a juror, and it authorizes penalties for interference. That anti-retaliation backbone is why modern jury duty policies tend to spend less time on lofty civic language and more time on the basics such as giving notice, scheduling expectations when court isn't in session, and a clear statement that nobody gets punished for going to court.

Federal wage and hour rules filled in the pay side of the story. The Fair Labor Standards Act salary basis rules pushed employers toward the common approach you see here, which is unpaid time for non-exempt employees unless they use PTO, and continued salary for exempt employees in any week they perform work. Over time, multi-state employers also standardized documentation practices, like asking for proof of service, because payroll teams needed something concrete to apply those pay rules consistently and to close the loop when court schedules changed midweek.

Which Law is the Jury Duty Policy Meant to Comply With?

If you create and distribute a Jury Duty Policy for your Delaware-based employees, it's in an effort to comply with Delaware's Title 10, Chapter 45.

How to Write a Delaware-Specific Jury Duty Policy

• Start with "why" and introduce the concept by encouraging employees to complete jury service and explaining the policy supports civic duty while managing work coverage.
• Require employees to notify your organization promptly after receiving a jury summons and to provide updates during service.
• Explain pay treatment for non-exempt employees, including that jury duty time is unpaid unless paid time off is used.
• Explain pay treatment for exempt employees, including when regular salary continues and when a full-week absence is unpaid.
• Require employees to provide proof of jury service after returning to work to ensure correct pay handling.
• State the expectation that employees work when they are not required to be in jury service, when it is reasonable.
• Include a non-retaliation commitment for requesting or taking jury duty leave.

When to Include this Policy in Your Employee Handbook

The law does not require you to publish a policy or issue a specific notice. That said, you still have to comply with the requirements that apply to you as an employer. 

Even when notice is not required, this is still the kind of policy most employers should put in their handbook or otherwise publish to employees (if you don't cover this with a single policy for all employees). It answers a question employees will ask, sets expectations, and gives managers a consistent script. If you don't include it, you'll end up explaining it ad hoc, and that's when inconsistency, resentment, and accidental noncompliance shows up.

Other Considerations

The law applies to Delaware employers who have at least 1 employee in the US.

Exceptions

None