Georgia — Leave Laws

Unable to confirm as of 2026-05-27.

Georgia employers must grant employees unpaid time off to attend a judicial proceeding in response to a subpoena, summons for jury duty, or other court order requiring attendance. O.C.G.A. § 34-1-3 prohibits employers from discharging, disciplining, or otherwise penalizing an employee for such absence, and bars threats of such action. Employers may require reasonable notification of the expected absence. The statute does not protect employees who are charged with a crime. Employers who violate the prohibition are liable to the injured employee for actual damages and reasonable attorney's fees.

Source: Georgia.gov Jury Duty Information | 1995 Ga. Att'y Gen. Op. 95-13

Georgia law requires state and local government employers to provide paid military leave to public officers and employees who perform ordered military duty as members of the National Guard, Georgia State Defense Force, or any reserve component of the U.S. armed forces. O.C.G.A. § 38-2-279 governs this entitlement; it does not apply to private-sector employees, who remain covered solely by the federal Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), 38 U.S.C. § 4301 et seq.

Scope — who is covered. O.C.G.A. § 38-2-279(a)(2) defines "public officer or employee" as every person who receives pay, salary, or compensation from the state, a county, municipal corporation, or any other political subdivision, excluding persons employed on a temporary basis. Temporary employees do not qualify for the paid-leave entitlement. "Ordered military duty" under § 38-2-279(a)(1) means military duty performed in the service of the state or the United States, including attendance at service schools conducted by the armed forces, pursuant to orders issued by competent state or federal authority. The statute does not cover involuntary draftees or inductees who are not members of the organized militia or a reserve component.

Paid leave — base entitlement of 18 days. Under O.C.G.A. § 38-2-279(e), every public officer or employee must be paid his or her regular salary or other compensation for any and all periods of absence while engaged in ordered military duty (and while traveling to and from such duty), not exceeding a total of 18 days in any one federal fiscal year (October 1 – September 30). The statute does not permit proration; the employee receives full pay for each of the first 18 workdays of ordered military duty per fiscal year.

Enhanced leave for National Guard members called by the Governor. If the Governor declares an emergency and orders a public officer or employee to state active duty as a member of the National Guard, § 38-2-279(e) extends the paid-leave ceiling to 30 days in any one federal fiscal year (still October 1 – September 30). This emergency provision applies only to National Guard members on state active-duty orders, not to federal Title 10 mobilizations.

Differential-pay option after the paid-leave period. O.C.G.A. § 38-2-279(e.1) authorizes (but does not require) a government employer to pay the difference between the employee's government salary and military pay for periods of ordered military duty that exceed the initial 18-day (or 30-day) paid-leave entitlement. This differential-pay provision is permissive; employers must adopt it affirmatively, and practice varies across state agencies, counties, and municipalities.

Job protection and reemployment rights. Time absent under § 38-2-279(d) does not constitute an interruption of continuous employment. The public officer or employee shall not be subjected to any loss or diminution of time, service, increment, vacation, holiday privileges, or any other right or privilege, and shall not be prejudiced with reference to continuance in office or employment, reappointment, reemployment, reinstatement, transfer, or promotion by reason of the absence. A public office is not considered vacated or abandoned by a public officer while on ordered military duty (§ 38-2-279(b)).

Private-sector employers — no state mandate. Georgia has not enacted a state military-leave entitlement for private employers. Private-sector employees in Georgia who are called to military service rely solely on USERRA for reemployment rights and unpaid leave protections. Practitioners advising private employers on military-leave policies should consult the federal USERRA requirements; Georgia state law adds nothing to that baseline for private employment.

Relation to State Personnel Board Rules. State agencies are also governed by the State Personnel Board Rules, codified at 478-1-.19 (Military Leave), which implement O.C.G.A. § 38-2-279 for state employees and prescribe notice, documentation, and benefits-continuation procedures. Local governments (counties, municipalities, and other political subdivisions) follow the statutory framework in § 38-2-279 and may supplement it with ordinances or personnel policies that provide additional benefits, subject to the statutory floor.

Source: O.C.G.A. § 38-2-279 (referenced in Georgia State Personnel Board Rule 478-1-.19)

Unable to confirm as of 2026-06-04.

Georgia law addresses employee time off to vote in primaries and elections. State employees receive paid voting leave; the extent of the statutory obligation imposed on private employers is addressed below.

State employees — paid leave under State Personnel Board Rule 478-1-.16(17). Non-temporary salaried employees of the State of Georgia are eligible for up to two hours of paid leave to vote in local, state, or national general elections or primaries. The paid voting leave may be taken at the beginning or end of the employee's regular workday. State Personnel Board Rule 478-1-.16(17)(a), which governs this entitlement, became effective in or after 2023 and reflects amendments to the underlying enabling statute, O.C.G.A. § 21-2-404. Employees who are scheduled to begin work at least two hours after polls open or end work at least two hours before polls close remain eligible for the paid leave (the prior version of the rule restricted eligibility based on the employee's schedule; that restriction was removed). No employee may be granted more than two hours of paid voting leave for a single election or primary. Employees should follow normal leave-request procedures when requesting voting leave.

Private employers — statutory framework. O.C.G.A. § 21-2-404, titled "Affording employees time off to vote," governs voting leave for all Georgia employees, including those in the private sector. State Personnel Board Rule 478-1-.16(17) references the statute and notes that it was amended effective July 1, 2023, but the Board rule itself applies only to state employees and does not purport to interpret or enforce the statute's requirements for private employers. The statute's text, detailed requirements (including whether private employers must provide paid or unpaid leave, notice requirements, permissible scheduling restrictions, and enforcement mechanisms) cannot be confirmed from official Georgia government publications as of 2026-06-04.

Source: Georgia State Personnel Board Rule 478-1-.16, Voting Leave