In theory, of course, a jury summons gives ample warning and therefore time to put contingency plans into effect. That assumes that you have contingency plans, that your employee informs you of the summons in good time and you are pleased to release them fulfil their social commitment. In practice, few young companies have given the impact of enforced absence much thought before it actually arises.
Many people feel that as far as jury service is concerned, they shouldn't have to. Small businesses are subject to different pressures than large corporate entities. "We do support leave of absence for statutory duties, Territorial Army reservists and so on," says Stephen Alambritis, head of press and parliamentary affairs for the Federation of Small Businesses. "But we're not so keen on enforcement for jury service. If you run a single person service company, being taken away for two or three weeks can result in significant loss of income. We do feel there is a case for exemption for small businesses and we have talked to the Government about exempting the self-employed. Unfortunately at the moment the Home Office seems determined to go in the opposite direction."
