Predictive Scheduling Ordinance Passes Chicago Council

Workers’ rights in the Windy City got a boost on July 23^rd with the passage of an ordinance that penalizes employers who fail to provide adequate scheduling notice to their employees. Dubbed the Chicago Fair Work Week Ordinance, the act is aimed at providing protections to salaried and hourly workers and takes effect in July of next year.

Under the terms of the ordinance, employers must provide schedules at least 10 days in advance and are required to compensate workers for unannounced changes and unscheduled overtime. The ordinance applies to hotel and restaurant workers, those in the building trades, in warehouse jobs and to workers in the construction industry. Workers at so-called Safety Net hospitals will gain coverage in 2021.

Fines range from $300-$500 based on the severity and frequency of violation out to $1,000 if an employer is found to have acted in retaliation against a worker making a prior claim. The ordinance covered workers in salaried jobs paying no more than $50,000 per year and workers that earn no more than $26 per hour. The ordinance is heralded as the nation’s most stringent predictive-scheduling legislation.