HISTORY MADE: Seattle workers made labor history on September 19th with a unanimous City Council vote to pass secure scheduling.
From Starbucks to McDonald's to Target, more and more companies are demanding we offer them 24/7 availability — but they're not offering us the flexibility we need to care for our families, contribute to our communities, and live balanced lives.
It seems like either you don’t get enough hours to pay the bills, or you get stuck with a workload that never ends — and you might not know which one it’s going to be until the workweek has already gotten started
You can’t live your life on a few day’s notice. If you don’t get your schedule until right before the workweek starts, everything becomes a scramble and it’s almost impossible get a second job, go back to school, make time to help your kids with their homework, or even just make an appointment.
That's why workers in coffee, fast food, and other jobs are speaking out about how unstable, unpredictable schedules are affecting their lives, budgets, and families — and what can be done to make our schedules more secure:
- Flexibility for workers, not just big companies: We need to protect our ability to voluntarily swap shifts with co-workers so we can keep things in balance when life happens.
- Access to hours: part-time workers who want more hours should have a shot at getting those hours before additional part-timers are brought on.
- Right to rest: We should eliminate clopenings by making sure nobody is forced to work back-to-back shifts that are less than 11 hours apart.
- Advance notice of schedules: Everyone should know when they're going to work and how many hours they're going to get — and one week or one day's notice doesn't cut it.
More information:
- Details on the key secure scheduling policies
- Frequently asked questions about secure scheduling
- Our summary and analysis of the city-commissioned report on current scheduling practices.
- New research shows the health impacts of unstable & insecure schedules.
I just think that consistency is key, and it seems like it's hard to have consistent hours here. It's frustrating when you do get hours but then you're sent home to cut labor or because it's slow. There's no way to plan your life. I don't think that work should be a hindrance."
That's one week. But we have to request vacation time 3 weeks in advance. l'm a shift supervisor but my baristas are getting shafted."
…no matter how sick I am. It is common knowledge that you are responsible for finding your own coverage, and it's also common knowledge that you won't find any. One day I was so sick I spread out some cardboard on the floor so I could at least lay down and my baristas called me when they needed me.”
