Lobby groups for big restaurant & retail chains are trying to pretend that there’s a debate about whether workers want balanced & flexible schedules. But after three hearings and one work session, every single one of more than a dozen different covered workers who have spoken on secure scheduling before the legislature have offered strong support.
Business lobbyists, stock photos & astroturf are the only opposition.
More than a dozen workers have made their way to Olympia to speak about secure scheduling at 3 hearings this legislative session and 1 work session during the interim, and the record is clear — every single worker who appeared before a committee and who would be covered by the state bill has expressed their strong support for secure scheduling.
Yes, the hospitality association did bring some servers from Seattle to the hearings and to their lobby day, but they work for places that aren’t covered by Seattle’s law and would not be covered by the state bill because their employers are full-service restaurant chains that have less than 40 locations.
That’s really no surprise when you notice that the Hospitality Association’s twitter header also pretends to be a group of workers, but is in fact a $499 stock photo titled “Full length portrait of a diverse group of business professionals” — a picture also used to illustrate the Top 4 Recruiting Trends to Watch in 2018, an initiative of the Scranton Chamber of Commerce, a seminar about whether employer are using compliant I-9 forms, some sales role-playing tips, and many many other webpages.
Secure scheduling would ensure balanced & flexible schedules for people who work for large food and retail chains in our state by ensuring:
Two weeks advance notice of schedules
Access to additional hours for current employees before new positions are posted
Eliminate mandatory clopens
More input into work schedules
Requirement that employers try to accommodate workers scheduling needs related to caregiving, second jobs, schooling, and other major life events.
Workers Testifying on Secure Scheduling
1. Amy Dayley Angell, QFC
Covered: large retail chain
2. Misty Brown, Olive Garden
Covered: large full-service restaurant chain with more than 40 locations
3. Roy Untalan, Walmart
Covered: large retail chain
4. Lindsey Moore, Chipotle
Covered: large fast-food chain
5. Nicole Bloam, Macy’s
Covered: large retail chain
6. Lee Ervin, PetSmart
Covered: large retail chain
7. McKyndree Rogers, Applebee’s
Covered: large full-service restaurant chain with more than 40 locations
8. Randy Hoggarth, Safeway
Covered: large retail chain
9. April Frazier, Olive Garden
Covered: large full-service restaurant chain with more than 40 locations
10. Erin Bishop, Compass Group Catering
Covered: large food service chain
11. Adam Scripter, Domino’s
Covered: large fast-food chain
12. David Rojas, Fred Meyer
Covered: large retail chain
13. Peter Charlie, Safeway
Covered: large retail chain
14. Karin Pauley, PCC
Covered: large retail chain
15. Sarah Rawlings, Trader Joe’s
Covered: large retail chain
In addition to the workers who have been able to appear in support before the committees despite short-notice hearings, well over 1000 workers across the state have sent messages to their legislators urging them to pass secure scheduling.
The only opposition to date has been offered by the usual industry lobbyists, plus a total of four people who are associated with an astroturf group exposed by the Columbia Journalism Review for receiving funding from the restaurant lobby and who all work for Tom Douglas Restaurants or Metropolitan Grill. Neither restaurant company is covered by Seattle’s secure scheduling law and neither would be covered by the bills before the state because neither company meets the 40-location threshold required for a full-service restaurant to be covered by the law.
HB 1491 (Macri) was heard in House Appropriations on Monday 2/25. SB 5717 (Saldana) awaits a hearing in Senate Ways & Means.