Too often in the service industry, we get no notice for our work schedule. There is no reason restaurants need to operate this way. Management could and would put out schedules with reasonable notice if they felt the need to. We feel the need - from arranging child care to scheduling school or a second job, there are many reasons we need reasonable notice.
We are tired of feeling on call.
We are tired of having no notice for our work schedules. It is harmful to our lives and takes away our ability to do so many normal things. We need reasonable notice.
We are service industry workers, and we know there is no need for last minute scheduling. Support secure scheduling for all WA workers!
What restaurant workers are saying about unstable & unpredictable schedules in the service industry:
I work for Red Lobster. We are CONSTANTLY moved around schedule wise. I'll go from 4 days to 1 day in the blink of an eye. I was promised more hours instead of hiring someone new, only to lose hours and have to train someone new. I am a single mom and my boss knows it's a struggle to even buy groceries but has flat said ‘the business is my concern. Your son eating isn't.’ This needs to stop!” — Cheyenne B., Vancouver
“On calls are horrible. We can't "cancel" scheduled daycare. We pay for "cancelled" appointments because we end up being "called in" just not fair all the way around.” — Marlana F., Spanaway
“Working two jobs is really hard when I don’t get my schedule until the day before i work.” — Natalie B., Vancouver
“The schedule comes out on Sunday night and our work week starts on Monday.” — Sonia W., Richland
“This legislation is so important not just for our industry but for workers as a whole! What’s the point of having a schedule if you don’t get it with enough time to schedule your life?” — Michael G., Olympia
“They expect us to just drop everything we’re doing to come in and work and then try to punish us when we say no. I’m sick of it, and something needs to put them in their place because this is an ongoing issue that needs positive change, especially since we do so much for the companies we work for.” — Shelby C., Vancouver
“I get 2 days notice of my shifts and I have another job” / “Ami me pasado que me avisan 2 días antes y yo tengo otro trabajo”— Hector H., Everett
“On call doesn’t work, when you have kids.” — Nicole F., Granite Falls.
“Employers should have to offer extra hours available to employees that are already working for them before hiring new employees, and if employer hires new workers they shouldn't be able to cut another employees hours or change their schedules they have had for a long time in order to provide hours or shifts to new hires.” — Julie H. Sequim
“I'm not in the service industry anymore. This is a large portion of why.” — Troy A., Chehalis
“My current boss is great with scheduling however every restaurant I’ve worked prior I’ve not had a set schedule and love for this to be given to everyone. It’s truly changed the quality of my life having a set schedule for the last year, and I want everyone else to have that!” — Jasmine B., Tacoma
“I can be on call from 7am to after 4pm. It's insane. My schedule gets posted Friday night for Monday. So 2 days. And I still have to call in every day.” — Sarah M., Seattle
“No nos ofrecen más horas y contratan más gente y nos cambian los dias muy constante y eso arruina la familia.” / “They do not offer us more hours, and they hire more people, and they change our days often, and that ruins families.” — Claudia J., Everett
“While I was working in Vancouver, WA, they would schedule us with less than 12 hours notice most times. Sunday night the schedule MAY come out. They often expected us to commute into work just to see the schedule as opposed to just sending it out to us. They would notify openers (6:30AM) at 9pm or later or Sunday that their shift was in the morning. Every time we asked them to comply with schedule flexibility (i.e. working with bus routes) they would strip us of a day off our schedule until entirely phasing us out, just shy of the Unemployment milestone. I would love to see more professionalism in the management within the restaurant industry.” — Will M., Vancouver
“I work at a small cafe on Capitol Hill. Our scheduling already works exactly like is being proposed. It's the only fair way to schedule. We've scheduled this way for all 22+ years we've existed. We've always recognized that everyone has responsibilities, other interests, and hopefully a life outside of work.” — Devon B., Seattle
“I remember an incident in which I was supposed to have a Tuesday off (I always screenshotted my schedule once it was assigned and would refer to the screenshot) and I received a call that day from my boss asking me where I was. It made me really angry because I had already made plans for that day even days prior and had to unexpectedly leave to go to a shift that I was not made aware of. I hope this bill gets passed so workers can’t keep getting taken advantage of. That’s one major reason why I wanted to leave the industry for other work because I felt that me and many of my coworkers were treated like second-class citizens, often our employers thinking of us as animals or robots with no personal lives of our own. They would only see dollar signs and would not be concerned with the human beings who were running their business.” — Gabe F., Seattle
“Before I began the job, my schedule had already been changed 3 times; 2 of which did not afford me the one schedule request I had made during the interview for a single night off per month. I also had a manager meeting scheduled for an early morning right after a midnight closing shift.” — Cody T., Seattle
“I think what is most exciting to me about this is the possibility of a culture shift within the service industry. In my experience the life changes outside of work are generally undervalued or not even believed. There’s a perception in the service industry about family emergencies and things like that they are generally not taken very seriously. I think that’s the biggest thing that I would love to see changed. And I think something like this could really do that. It puts real protections in place for people who are working some of the hardest, most demanding jobs. For me, going back into the workforce after I have my baby is kind of a daunting task. I’m considering reinventing myself after working almost 10 years in the service industry, something I’ve committed myself to - I really like customer service. I think this would help me feel like I had a really worthwhile career, if I had these legal protections in place to fall back on and know that my life wasn’t always going to be at the throws of whoever I’m working for. “ — Kayla G., Port Angeles