Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) joined Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Representatives Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) and Bobby Scott (D-Va.), and nearly 80 of their colleagues to introduce the Schedules that Work Act in the Senate and House. The legislation addresses unstable, unpredictable, and rigid scheduling practices such as placing workers “on-call” with no guarantee of work hours, scheduling them for “split shifts” of non-consecutive hours, sending workers home early without pay when demand is low and punishing workers who request schedule changes. (Read the fact sheet here.)
These scheduling practices disproportionately affect low-wage workers and workers in retail, food service, and cleaning occupations, and make it hard for these workers and their families to maintain stable child care, care for other family members, pursue career development or other education, get or keep a second job, or take care of their own health. Variable schedules can also lead to significant fluctuations in income for workers. As a result, workers struggle to manage their household incomes and balance professional responsibilities with individual and family needs.
“Our country, our economy, and our workplaces should work for all families, not just the wealthiest few, but today, unfair scheduling practices keep workers guessing on when they’ll be called in to work and with no guarantee of how much money they’ll earn in a given week,” Senator Murray said. “That makes it nearly impossible for many workers to balance their jobs with individual and family needs. Our bill would alleviate some of that needless pressure on workers and restore economic security and stability to more families.”
The Schedules that Work Act has been endorsed by numerous women’s, labor, and civil rights groups, including 9to5 National Association of Working Women, A Better Balance, American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), Metal Trades Department of the AFL-CIO, American Association of University Women, American Federation of Teachers (AFT), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), Americans for Democratic Action (ADA), Catalyst, Center for Community Change Action, Center for Effective Government, Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), Center for Popular Democracy, Central Florida Jobs with Justice, Coalition of Labor Union Women, Colorado Center on Law and Policy, Communications Workers of America, Connecticut Association for Human Services, DC Jobs With Justice, Economic Policy Institute, EINet, Equal Rights Advocates, Family Forward Oregon, Family Values @ Work, Gender Justice, Indiana Institute for Working Families, Institute for Science and Human Values, Interfaith Worker Justice, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Implement Workers of America (UAW), Jewish Women International, Jobs With Justice, Labor Project for Working Families, Legal Aid Society-Employment Law Center, Maine Women’s Lobby, Make the Road CT, Massachusetts Communities Action Network, MO Organizing for Reform and Empowerment, Mom-mentum, MomsRising, National Advocacy Center of the Sisters, National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), National Center for Lesbian Rights, National Council of Jewish Women, National Domestic Workers Alliance, National Employment Law Project, National Employment Lawyers Association, National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund, National Network to End Domestic Violence, National Organization for Women, National Partnership for Women & Families, National Women’s Law Center, New Jersey Main Street Alliance, New York Union Child Care Coalition, NJ Industrial Union Council, NJ Time to Care Coalition, PowHer New York – Equal Pay Campaign, Public Justice Center, Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, Retail Action Project, Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, Rise Up, Shriver National Center on Poverty Law, South Bay AFL-CIO Labor Council, Susan Knape Associates Inc., The Make It Work Campaign, UltraViolet, UNITE HERE, United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), Washington Metro Disabled Students Collective (WMDSC), Western Center on Law and Poverty, Wider Opportunities for Women, Wisconsin Jobs Now, Women Employed, Women’s Law Project, Woodstock Institute, Working America, Working Partnerships USA, Young Invincibles, and YWCA USA.
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