Election Day Is November 3. Your Voting-Time Notice Is Due by October 24
A lot of small employers assume voting is something employees handle before or after work, on their own time.
Where the Assumption Breaks
That assumption fails for the employee who cannot reach the polls outside a long shift. It also fails on paper if the required notice never went up.
What the Elections Code Requires
Under Elec. Code § 14000, an employee who does not have enough time outside working hours to vote at a statewide election may take off enough working time to vote, and up to two hours of that time must be paid. The time comes at the beginning or end of the regular shift, whichever leaves the most free time for voting and the least time off, unless the employer and employee agree otherwise.
If the employee knows by the third working day before the election that time off will be needed, the employee must give at least two working days’ notice (§ 14000(c)).
The Posting Deadline for November 3
Under Elec. Code § 14001, the employer must post a notice of these rights at least 10 days before every statewide election, conspicuously at the place of work, or where employees can see it as they come and go if posting at the workplace is not practicable. With the statewide general election on November 3, 2026, the notice has to be up by October 24.
October 24 is a Saturday.
No Employee-Count Threshold in the Statute
Section 14000 does not set an employee-count threshold. Small teams are covered too.
Whether a particular employee has enough time outside work turns on the shift, the polling hours, and the commute, which owners rarely know until someone asks. Our page on wage, hour, and pay practices for employers covers how paid-time questions like this one fit into payroll.
If the notice is not posted by October 24, or an Election Day scheduling request gets brushed off, a routine civic obligation can turn into a workplace dispute. That is what a first conversation is for.
Contact Michael Trust Law, APC for a no-charge initial consultation. The facts determine what needs to be addressed – and how much of a conversation that takes.
This post shares general information based on common patterns I see in California workplaces. It is not legal advice, does not create an attorney-client relationship, and outcomes depend on specific facts – no lawyer can guarantee a result. Past results do not guarantee or predict future outcomes. AI may have been used to create this post. All content reviewed by a CA attorney before publication.