Day-Brite Lighting, Inc. v. Missouri

Background

A Missouri company and one of its hourly workers became the center of a dispute over a state law that gives every voter four hours off work to vote without penalty and prohibits employers from cutting pay for that time. The employee left work early to vote and was not paid for one and a half hours; the company was convicted under the statute and the Missouri Supreme Court affirmed. The company appealed to the United States Supreme Court, arguing the law violated constitutional protections for liberty, equal treatment, and private contracts.

Reasoning

The core question was whether the State may require employers to give paid time for voting and punish employers who deduct wages for that absence. The Court upheld the law. It said states can use their power to protect voting as part of the public welfare, likening the rule to other labor regulations such as minimum-wage laws and rejecting an old doctrine that would treat such rules as unconstitutional interference with private contracts. The Supreme Court therefore affirmed the employer’s conviction for penalizing the employee.

Real world impact

Employers in Missouri must provide four hours for employees to vote and cannot deduct pay for that period or face criminal penalties. The ruling aims to reduce employer pressure on employees about voting and to remove a practical obstacle to turnout. The decision resolves that challenge to this Missouri voting rule at the highest court.

Dissents or concurrances

A dissenting Justice warned the law forces employers to pay for time not worked, may be unfair or discriminatory to small businesses and self-employed people, and could raise difficult practical questions about who bears voting costs.