Business community push back against proposed Maryland Fair Scheduling Act
SALISBURY, Md- A proposed bill in Maryland’s legislature aims to cut down on last-minute schedule changes for retail and restaurant workers.
The Maryland Fair Scheduling Act would see retail shops and restaurants with more than 10 locations across the state pay time and a half for employees who are asked to work overtime within an 11-hour window of their original shift, as well as pay workers for being on standby for hours that the businesses did not dole out to the workers.
Lawmakers argue that retail workers often do not know their schedules until less than a week before, and changes beyond that can cause undue stress, schedule disruption, and transportation costs that are not offset by hours being lower than previously discussed.
“This is why it’s important to grant compensation for the worker when they are asked to come into work to cover for problems the scheduling has caused,” said Bill Sponsor Senator Joanne Benson.
Testifying in favor of her bill at the Senate Finance Committee, Benson was joined by members of retail worker unions, who say that Fair Scheduling is a practice that was already incorporated by grocery chain Giant through a collective bargaining agreement between the retailer and the union.
“Multiple studies find that businesses that have predictable scheduling have lower turnover, easier time tracking on payroll, and increase worker productivity,” said United Worker Local 400 member Kayla Mock.
-Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce President Bill Chambers says the business community does not support the bill, telling 47ABC the measure could directly hurt chain restaurants who are facing higher costs with fewer workers.
“This is another employer mandate being attempted to hand down to the businesses community and it hurts those who need help the most the hospitality and retail spaces,” Chambers said adding “this is a solution in search of a problem.”
But advocates for the bill say the measure would help solve the problem of fewer workers, by making the schedules more predictable and increasing pay for workers who operate within the fields.
Chambers disagrees.
“If I am a business my payroll is now higher, my costs are going off I have to offset that to the consumers but if I go above a certain price I will lose demand, so maybe they do make more money and time and a half but they can only have so many workers, or they have to automate away positions, so for me its anti-worker,” he said.
The measure is set to receive a hearing in the following weeks in the Senate Finance Committee.
