No state-mandated paid leave
South Dakota has no law requiring private employers to provide paid leave of any type, including paid sick leave or paid vacation. Paid leave in South Dakota is a matter of employer policy rather than statutory mandate. Employers that voluntarily offer paid leave must follow their own established policies.
Jury duty leave — job protection, unpaid
South Dakota law prohibits employers from discharging or suspending any employee for serving as a juror. An employee serving as a juror must retain and be entitled to the same job status, pay grade, and seniority the employee held prior to jury service. Employers are not required to provide paid time off for jury duty; whether the absence is paid or unpaid is left to the employer's discretion.
Voting leave — two consecutive paid hours when needed
South Dakota requires employers to provide paid time off for employees to vote, but only when the employee lacks sufficient non-working time to vote while polls are open. Under S.D. Codified Laws § 12-3-5, an employee who does not have two consecutive hours of off-duty time available while the polls are open—either before the employee's shift begins or after it ends—is entitled to absent themselves from work for up to two consecutive hours to vote. The time off must be paid; the employer may not impose any penalty or make any deduction from the employee's usual salary or wages on account of the absence.
Employer control over timing. Although the employee is entitled to the leave, the employer retains the right to designate when during the employee's shift the two-hour absence will occur. The statute does not require advance notice from the employee, nor does it prescribe a procedure for requesting leave; it simply confers the right when the non-working-time threshold is not met.
Application to all elections. The statute applies to any election in which the employee is entitled to vote, not solely general or statewide elections. Employers should track local, primary, and special-election dates in addition to November general elections.
Criminal penalty for noncompliance. An employer who refuses an employee the privilege conferred by § 12-3-5, who subjects an employee to a penalty or wage reduction because of exercising the right, or who otherwise violates the section commits a Class 2 misdemeanor under South Dakota law. Under S.D. Codified Laws § 22-6-2, a Class 2 misdemeanor is punishable by up to 30 days in county jail, a fine of up to $500, or both.
Contrast with jury duty leave. While South Dakota protects employees from discharge or suspension for jury service (S.D. Codified Laws §§ 16-13-41.1 & 16-13-41.2), jury duty leave need not be paid. Voting leave is unusual among South Dakota's leave protections in mandating pay, not merely job protection.
Source: S.D. Codified Laws § 12-3-5