NYC Eyes Reform On QSR Work Scheduling Policies

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio is working on legislation that should help curb the unpredictable schedules of the 65,000 hourly workers in NYC. Two weeks ago, in front of a Brooklyn McDonald’s, the mayor announced the Fair Workweek legislation, which would require employers to release employee schedules a minimum of two weeks in advance.

"Too many New Yorkers are being put in untenable situations—taking care of kids and aging parents, and then being forced to deal with an arbitrary schedule at a job where they still don’t always make ends meet," the mayor said.

The legislation, which de Blasio intends to draft with the City Council, is expected to require QSR employers to schedule a majority of expected shifts and publicly post a workplace schedule two weeks in advance; protect workers by requiring employers to provide additional compensation when workers are required to accommodate last-minute changes to their schedules for reasons within employers’ ability to plan or control; and address problems created by shifts requiring employees to consecutively work closing and opening shifts with fewer than ten hours between them.