New York’s attorney general thinks big chains operating stores in his state may have crossed a legal line with the use of “on-call shifts,” which depends on staffing software to notify employees, within a short time frame, whether or not they will be working on a given day.
In a letter sent last week to 13 large chains — including Ann Inc, Abercrombie & Fitch, Burlington Coat Factory, Crocs, Gap, J.C. Penney, J. Crew, L Brands, Sears, Target, TJX Cos., Urban Outfitters and Williams-Sonoma — New York’s AG, Eric Schneiderman, wrote that the use of on-call scheduling leaves “too little time to make arrangements for family needs, let alone to find an alternative source of income to compensate for the lost pay” on days when they are not called to work.
Mr. Schneiderman asked the chains contacted to provide details on their use of on-call shifts to determine if they may be violating a state law. In New York, employees who report to work for a scheduled shift have to be paid for at least four hours at the minimum wage.
New York, according to an NPR report, is one of eight states along with Washington, D.C. that have “reporting time” laws.
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According to a Reuters report, California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota and Oregon are considering bills that would address the use of on-call scheduling.
The practice of on-call shifts has also gotten the attention of the U.S. Labor Department.
“This is an important issue for workers struggling with work-life balance, especially for women,” Tania Mejia, a spokesperson for the Labor Department, told Reuters.
Ann Inc, J.C. Penney, Sears and Target said they do not use on-call systems to schedule employees.
Date: April 14, 2015