A new workplace fairness measure is getting increased attention around the country. “Fair Workweek” proposals address employee concerns about lack of control and certainty over their work schedules. Proponents want employers to give advance notice of work schedules, allow employees to turn down shifts without losing their jobs, provide sufficient rest time between the end of one shift and the beginning of the next, and adopt other protections against uncertain work schedules. To date, such measures have been adopted in San Francisco CA (Formula Retail Employee Rights Ordinances), San Jose CA (Opportunity to Work Ordinance), Emeryville CA (Fair Workweek Ordinance), Seattle WA (Secure Scheduling Ordinance), Oregon (Fair Work Week Act), New York City NY (Fair Workweek Law), Vermont (Flexible Working Arrangement Law), New Hampshire (Flexible Working Arrangement Law), Santa Clara County CA (Living Wage Ordinance), and Philadelphia PA (Fair Workweek Employment Standards).
On March 1, 2019, three members of the Los Angeles City Council introduced a motion directing the City Attorney to draft a fair workweek law that would require retail businesses in Los Angeles with 300 or more employees to have written and posted work schedules, to provide two weeks’ notice of work schedules, to recognize a right to request a flexible schedule/right to decline hours without retaliation, to predictability pay, to rest between shifts of 10 hours and to have access to additional hours. The sponsors of the motion were Council Members Curren Price and Paul Koretz, and Council President Herb Wesson.
