Workers Have Legal Right To Take Time Off Work To Vote Today

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.laborradio.org/node/14359

Submitted by Doug Cunningham on November 1, 2010 - 5:21pm
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Today is Election Day and you might not know it, but your employer may be required by law to give you time off to vote. Jesse Russell reports.

The Workers Independent News has looked through various voting laws in all 50 states and has found that most states require employers give time off unless employees have anywhere from two to three hours to vote before or after a shift. For those employees that can’t vote before or after a shift most laws simply require that employees ask for permission. Arizona, Illinois, Kentucky, and Oklahoma all require one-day notice. The states that don’t require employers to give time off are: Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, and Virginia. Of those, Florida and Louisiana have laws that protect workers from being fired for participating in politics. Of all the states, Indiana has the most restrictive voting options. The state doesn’t require employers to allow time for voting, while that state can boast the shortest amount of time for voting. Polls in Indiana are only open from 6 a.m. until 6 p.m. Federally, it’s a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act to deduct time off to vote from the wages of exempt or salaried employees.

[stray cat]

1. True especially if they are working from 6am to 9 pm all day when the polls are open

[LWolf]

2. Oregonians don't need time off to vote,

since we vote from the comfort of our homes, on our own time schedule. I'd like to see the rest of the nation do the same. If not, I think a national election day holiday is appropriate.