If you’ve ever posted a schedule on Sunday for a week that starts Monday, you already know the fallout: frantic shift swaps, childcare scrambles, and a payroll week full of exceptions.
Fair Workweek laws (often called predictive scheduling) aim to fix that. These laws require employers to publish schedules in advance and, in many places, compensate employees for last-minute changes. Workers deal with less scheduling chaos, while employers encounter fewer compliance surprises for employers.
Here’s a quick guide to understanding Fair Workweek laws.
What is Fair Workweek?
Fair Workweek is a set of local and state rules in the U.S. that give hourly workers — most often in retail, hospitality, and food service — more predictable schedules and better access to hours.
Many of you may also know these laws by other names:
- Oregon – Predictive Scheduling
- Seattle – Secure Scheduling
- San Francisco – Formula Retail Employee Rights Ordinances
- Los Angeles and Berkeley – Fair Work Week
- San Jose – Opportunity to Work
If you operate across multiple cities or states, expect differences in the requirements. A practical step is to build a simple matrix by location (or just use ours, later in the article) covering industry scope, employer-size thresholds, the notice window, predictability pay rules, and recordkeeping. Review it quarterly against official city or state pages.
[Disclaimer: This article is not a substitute for financial or legal guidance. Always verify that the information, as it exists, is up to date and accurate.]
What are the main requirements of Fair Workweek laws?
Fair Workweek rules are local, but the backbone is consistent — tell people when they’ll work, honor rest, get consent for late changes, and pay premiums when you don’t.
Most ordinances require a good-faith estimate at or near hire, set schedule notices, written consent for changes inside that window, and predictability pay when alterations happen.
Many also include right-to-rest protections, access-to-hours for current staff before hiring, and explicit recordkeeping requirements. Confirm the thresholds, carve-outs, and retention periods for your relevant jurisdictions, then configure your employee scheduling software to enforce them by location.
Good-faith estimates
At or near hire, provide a written estimate of expected days, times, and average weekly hours. Some cities may require an updated estimate once a year, so keep the estimate current if patterns change, and retain copies for your records.
Advance notice of schedules
Post schedules before a set window — often 14 days — and keep them accessible to employees. Changes inside the window usually require consent and may trigger predictability pay, with carve-outs that vary by city.
Consent/right to decline added hours
Employees can decline hours added inside the notice window. Document consent when workers accept changes within that period.
Predictability pay
Predictability pay is extra compensation some jurisdictions require when you change an hourly employee’s schedule inside a defined notice window. It typically applies to added hours, canceled or reduced shifts, or significant timing changes after schedules are posted.
The trigger window varies by location, often 7–14 days. Many laws carve out exceptions for employee-initiated swaps, documented emergencies, or written consent. These premiums add up quickly, so careful publishing and clear documentation matter.
“Clopening” / right-to-rest
Most rules require a rest period (often 9-11 hours) between a closing and the next opening shift. Some areas allow shorter rest only with written consent and premium pay. Build right-to-rest checks (“clopening”) into your scheduler so violations are prevented before they’re published.
Access to hours
Before hiring new staff, access-to-hours rules require that you offer additional hours to qualified current employees. San Jose’s “Opportunity to Work” is a prominent example of this.
Recordkeeping
Retain estimates, posted schedules, change logs, consent records, and predictability-pay documentation for the required retention period (varies by jurisdiction). Centralize and back up these records, as they’re critical for labor law compliance during audits or disputes.
Who is covered by Fair Workweek?
Coverage typically depends on your industry and employer size/footprint. The examples below are not exhaustive, but reflect the variety of Fair Workweek laws across the U.S.:
| City and Industry(s) | Location/Employee Threshold | Additional information |
| New York City, NY Fast food chains (incl. franchises) | 30+ locations nationwide | Requires predictable schedules, 14-day posting, access-to-hours and other protections enforced by DCWP. (New York City Government) |
| New York City, NY Retail | 20+ employees in NYC | 72-hour schedule notice; bans on on-call scheduling and last-minute cancellations without consent. (New York City Government) |
| Oregon (Statewide) Retail, hospitality, food services | 500+ employees worldwide | Predictive scheduling law with 14-day advance posting; BOLI administers and enforces. (Oregon) |
| Los Angeles, CA (City) Retail | 300+ employees worldwide | Fair Work Week Ordinance effective Apr 1, 2023; includes advance notice and predictability pay. (Wages LA) |
| Los Angeles County (Unincorporated) Retail | 300+ employees worldwide | County Fair Workweek effective July 1, 2025; mirrors core city requirements (14-day notice, right to rest, predictability pay). (LACo Consumer Affairs) |
| Seattle, WA Retail; food service | 500+ employees worldwide; full-service restaurants also need 40+ locations | Secure Scheduling Ordinance; 14-day posting and related protections under OLS guidance. (Seattle) |
| Philadelphia, PA Retail, hospitality, food service | 250+ employees and 30+ locations worldwide | 14-day posting, predictability pay, right-to-rest; see city FAQ/resources. (City of Philadelphia) |
| San Francisco, CA “Formula retail” chains | 40+ locations worldwide and 20+ employees in SF | FRERO (Retail Workers’ Bill of Rights) regulates scheduling, retention, and access to hours. (San Francisco Government) |
| San Jose, CA All industries (access-to-hours rule) | 36+ employees; employer is subject to the San José Business License Tax or maintains a facility in San José | Must offer additional hours to existing qualified part-time employees before hiring new staff (including temps and subcontractors). City resources include FAQs, an official notice, and a hardship-exemption process; ordinance effective Mar 13, 2017. (San José City) |
| Chicago, IL Multiple industries (building services, healthcare, hotel, manufacturing, restaurant, retail, warehouse) | Employer size varies by industry (most 100+; restaurants 250+ & 30+ locations). Coverage capped at $32.60/hr or $62,561.90/yr (as of July 1, 2025). | Predictability pay and advance notice requirements apply to covered employees; check the city’s current thresholds each July. (Chicago) |
| Emeryville, CA Retail; fast food | Retail: 56+ employees globally. Fast food: 56+ globally and 20+ in Emeryville | Local Fair Workweek standards for scheduling, notice, and premiums. (emeryville.org) |
| Evanston, IL Hospitality, retail, warehouse, manufacturing, building services; (restaurants differ) | Most industries: 100+ employees globally. Restaurants: 200+ employees & 30+ locations | Ordinance effective Jan 1, 2024; coverage and requirements detailed on city page. (City of Evanston) |
| Berkeley, CA Multiple industries (see ordinance) | Coverage varies by sector; many categories use global headcount plus 10+ employees in Berkeley | Ordinance operative Jan 12, 2024; includes advance notice, predictability pay, right-to-rest, and access-to-hours. (Berkeley City Government) |
Why should employers care about Fair Workweek Laws?
Even if you already publish schedules early, the legal details matter. Requirements differ by city and state, and penalties add up when notice windows or rest rules are missed. For multi-site organizations, consistency is the challenge — you need a standardized way to follow local rules without turning every manager into a labor compliance expert.
How do Fair Workweek Laws benefit employers?
- Lower avoidable turnover and better morale when schedules are stable
- Fewer scheduling scrambles, with less overtime pay creep and service gaps
- Stronger employer brand with candidates who value predictability
- A clearer compliance posture, reducing exposure to fines and disputes
Why should employees care about Fair Workweek Laws?
Predictability determines whether you can pick up a second shift or pick up your kid on time.
Stable schedules help with budgeting, transportation, school, and caregiving. When changes happen, predictability pay and consent rules help protect earnings and choice, especially in sectors where hours swing week to week.
How do Fair Workweek Laws benefit employees?
- More consistent income and financial stability in work
- Greater ability to plan life outside work, leading to lower stress
- Reduced burnout with right-to-rest/right-to-decline protections
- A real voice in schedule changes instead of last-minute directives
How does employee scheduling software help with Fair Workweek Laws?
The short version: employee scheduling software makes the rules practical.
In one place, you can publish on time, document consent, flag risks, and keep a defensible audit trail. Manual workflows break down across multiple sites and jurisdictions, while automated checks scale the process and remove guesswork.
What an employee scheduling software needs for Fair Workweek Laws
If you’re checking your employee scheduling software for Fair Workweek compliance, or you’re looking for a new solution to handle it, here’s what to prioritize:
☑ Notice-period controls – Set 7–14 day posting windows by location, block off-cycle publishes, and show a countdown so managers know when the window closes.
☑ Consent workflows – When a change falls inside the notice window, automatically prompt the employee to accept or decline and log the response alongside the schedule.
☑ Location-level configuration – Apply different rules (notice period, premium triggers, retention) by city or state without spreadsheets or custom workarounds.
☑ Schedule predictability – Surface conflicts before publishing — like overlapping shifts, overtime, or understaffed hours — and require an acknowledgement when a late change is unavoidable.
In employee scheduling solutions like Humanity Schedule from TCP, these capabilities come standard for Fair Workweek compliance.
One thing to note: As Fair Workweek Laws continue to evolve and expand, software won’t always be able to keep up with everything. If your solution doesn’t include right-to-rest or good-faith estimate features, you need a workflow to enforce them e.g., a pre-publish check for “clopenings” and a shared template for estimates that managers can update when patterns change.
Next steps: Compliance with Fair Workweek Laws
Fair Workweek has moved from talking point to policy, and it’s spreading. For organizations, the upside is real with steadier staffing, fewer surprises, and a clearer compliance position. For employees, these laws provide predictability, fairness, and peace of mind.
Your best defense is a simple playbook. Confirm coverage and thresholds, publish early and consistently, log consent for late changes, plan for premiums, and keep excellent records.
If you’re still working with manual scheduling and hoping for the best, this is the moment to modernize. An employee scheduling software with Fair Workweek guardrails built in helps you publish earlier, make changes with less risk, and keep track of everything that matters.
TCP Software’s employee scheduling and time and attendance solutions have the flexibility and scalability to suit your organization and employees as you grow.
From TimeClock Plus, which automates even the most complex payroll calculations and leave management requests, to Humanity Schedule for dynamic employee scheduling that saves you time and money, we have everything you need to meet your organization’s needs, no matter how unique.
Plus, with Aladtec, we offer 24/7 public safety scheduling solutions for your hometown heroes.
Ready to learn how TCP Software takes the pain out of employee scheduling and time tracking? Speak with an expert today.
