Federal & State Regulations | Leave - Tennessee | J. J. Keller® Compliance Network

Summary of difference between federal and state regulations

The Fair Labor Standards Act does not require payment for time not worked. This type of benefit is generally a matter of agreement between an employer and an employee (or the employee’s representative). Employers, however, do need to comply with applicable state laws.

Jury duty

Tennessee law requires employers to pay employees for jury duty, minus any jury fees paid to the employee. This doesn’t apply to any employer who employs on a regular basis less than five people or to any employee who has been employed on a temporary basis for less than six months.

Voting

Tennessee law allows an employee reasonable time, but not more than three hours, to vote in the county where the employee resides. Pay deductions are not allowed. This time off for voting doesn’t apply if there are three consecutive nonworking hours before or after the shift to vote. The employee must request leave of absence prior to the day of election and the employer can specify the hours taken off.

Volunteer firefighters and rescue workers

Tennessee law prohibits discharge of employees who serve as volunteer firefighters or rescue workers. According to state law, no employer shall terminate such an employee solely because the employee is absent or late to employment in order to respond to an emergency.

An employer may charge any time that an employee loses from employment because of such employee’s response to an emergency against the employee’s regular pay.

An employer has the right to request an employee who loses time from the employee’s employment to respond to an emergency to provide the employer with a written statement from the supervisor or acting supervisor of the volunteer fire department or rescue sqaud stating that the employee responded to an emergency and list the time and date of the emergency.

Any employee who may be absent or late to the employee’s employment in order to respond to an emergency shall make a reasonable effort to notify such employee’s employer that the employee may be absent or late.

Any employee that is terminated in violation of the provisions of this section may bring a civil action against such employee’s employer. The employee may seek reinstatement to the employee’s former position, payment of back wages, reinstatement of fringe benefits, and where seniority rights are granted, the reinstatement of seniority rights. The employee has one (1) year from the date of a violation of this section to file an action.