Those who serve as jurors are participating in one of the fundamental institutions of democracy. An employer may not deprive an employee of his or her employment, or threaten or otherwise coerce a person because the employee received a subpoena, responded, and served as a juror. Any employer who violates this law is guilty of a summary offense. The employee also is allowed a reasonable attorney's fee fixed by the Court. There is no provision in the law requiring an employer to pay an employee wages while on jury duty.
Many unions make provisions for jury duty in their union contracts.
In addition, jurors are compensated for mileage at the rate of 17 cents per mile. Another feature of the One Day or One Trial system is the selection of stand-by jurors. This system is designed so that an excessive number of jurors need not sit for a long period of time when extra jurors are not needed. The stand-by provision affords significant financial savings to the taxpayers of Allegheny County. Before the One Day or One Trial jury system, postponement of jury service was not a routine consideration extended to prospective jurors.