What are predictive scheduling laws?

Predictive scheduling laws require employers to give workers advance notice of their shifts, often with financial penalties for last-minute changes. The idea is straightforward: frontline employees deserve enough warning to plan childcare, transportation, and second jobs. Employers who change or cancel shifts with little notice must pay a premium, sometimes called a "predictability pay" penalty.

These laws have been gaining ground across the US since 2014. As of 2026, they are in force in a growing list of cities and states, with more jurisdictions actively considering similar legislation. If you manage hourly workers in retail, hospitality, healthcare, or food service, there is a good chance at least one of these laws applies to you right now.

Which jurisdictions have predictive scheduling laws?

Here is a state-by-state breakdown of the major laws currently in force.

Oregon (statewide)

Oregon passed the first statewide predictive scheduling law in 2017. It applies to retail, hospitality, and food service employers with 500 or more employees worldwide. Key requirements include:

  • Provide a written good-faith estimate of hours at the time of hire
  • Post schedules at least 14 days in advance
  • Pay predictability pay for schedule changes made with less than 14 days notice, scaling up the closer to the shift the change occurs
  • Offer additional hours to existing part-time employees before hiring new staff

Seattle, Washington

Seattle's Secure Scheduling Ordinance covers retail and food service employers with 500 or more employees worldwide, plus full-service restaurants with 500 or more employees and 40 or more locations. Employers must:

  • Provide a good-faith estimate of hours at hire
  • Post schedules 14 days in advance
  • Pay predictability pay for changes within 14 days
  • Offer available shifts to current employees before bringing in new hires

San Francisco, California

San Francisco's Formula Retail Employee Rights Ordinance predates most similar laws, having been on the books since 2014. It covers formula retail establishments with 40 or more locations worldwide and 20 or more employees in San Francisco. Core obligations include:

  • Two weeks advance notice of schedules
  • Predictability pay for schedule changes, additions, or cancellations made with less than two weeks notice
  • The right to request part-time or reduced hours without retaliation

Chicago, Illinois

Chicago's Fair Workweek Ordinance, effective since 2020, applies to employers in specific industries including retail, restaurants, hotels, building services, healthcare, and manufacturing with 100 or more employees globally (250 or more for nonprofits). Requirements include:

  • Posting schedules in advance — confirm the current notice period with local counsel, as the ordinance has been subject to amendment
  • Pay predictability pay for changes made inside the required notice window
  • Offer additional work to current part-time employees before hiring new workers

New York City, New York

New York City's Fair Workweek Law targets fast food and retail employers. The fast food provisions require:

  • 14 days advance notice of schedules
  • Predictability pay for changes within that window
  • Limits on on-call shifts and "clopening" shifts (closing followed by opening within a short time)

Retail provisions separately prohibit on-call scheduling and require posting schedules 72 hours in advance.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia's Fair Workweek Employment Standards Ordinance covers food service, hospitality, and retail employers with 250 or more employees and 30 or more locations worldwide. Employers must give 10 days advance notice, rising to 14 days by 2030, and pay predictability pay for changes inside that window.

Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles has passed a Fair Work Week Ordinance for retail employers. It applies to retail businesses with 300 or more employees globally and requires 14 days advance notice of schedules plus predictability pay for changes.

What counts as a "schedule change" that triggers predictability pay?

This varies by jurisdiction, but common triggers include:

  • Adding or reducing hours on an already-posted shift
  • Cancelling a shift after the advance-notice window has closed
  • Moving a shift to a different time or day
  • Sending an employee home early
  • Requiring an employee to work an additional unplanned shift

Important: most laws exempt changes initiated by the employee. If a worker voluntarily swaps a shift or asks to leave early, predictability pay generally does not apply. The exemption paperwork still matters though, and you need a clear record of who requested what.

What is the penalty for non-compliance?

Predictability pay rates differ by jurisdiction, but a common structure is one hour of pay at the employee's regular rate for a minor change made within the notice window, rising to higher amounts as the change gets closer to the shift start. Some cities also allow employees to file complaints with a labor standards agency, which can trigger audits, back-pay orders, and civil penalties.

For employers with large hourly workforces, these costs add up quickly. A retailer with 200 part-time employees making frequent last-minute changes could face substantial annual penalties before any enforcement action even begins.

Which industries are most affected?

Predictive scheduling laws are focused on industries that have historically relied on on-call and just-in-time scheduling:

  • Retail (especially chain and formula retail)
  • Food service and fast food
  • Hospitality
  • Healthcare (some jurisdictions)
  • Building services and cleaning

If you operate in any of these sectors, these laws are almost certainly relevant to your operations today.

Practical steps for employers

1. Audit which laws apply to you

Size thresholds, industry definitions, and notice periods vary. A business with 200 employees in Chicago may be covered while a 200-employee business in a different city may not be. Get local counsel involved, especially if you operate across multiple jurisdictions.

2. Build schedule publishing into your process

Compliance starts with the roster. If your current workflow involves managers posting schedules three or four days out, that needs to change. Build a 14-day (or jurisdiction-appropriate) publishing cadence into your scheduling process.

3. Track every change and who requested it

You need an audit trail. When a shift changes, record the reason, who made the change, and whether the employee initiated it. Paper logs are prone to error and hard to produce during an audit. A scheduling platform that logs changes automatically is considerably more reliable.

4. Create a clear process for employee-initiated swaps

Most laws exempt employee-initiated changes, but only if you can prove the employee asked. Build a documented swap or voluntary change process so that exemptions are easy to verify.

5. Train your managers

Front-line managers are the ones posting schedules and approving changes. They need to understand what predictability pay is, when it applies, and what documentation is required. Compliance education is not a one-time event, particularly when laws are amended.

How scheduling software supports compliance documentation

Tracking notice windows, change logs, and schedule history manually is error-prone at scale. Scheduling software that centralises roster publishing and maintains a timestamped record of every change gives operations teams a more reliable documentation foundation than spreadsheets or paper logs. Having a clear, auditable history of who changed what, and when, is the practical starting point for demonstrating good-faith compliance in any jurisdiction.

Humanforce's workforce management platform is built for shift-based workforces, with centralised rostering, shift management, and change-history tracking across teams. These capabilities support more disciplined schedule publishing and change documentation — though employers should always confirm jurisdiction-specific compliance obligations with local counsel rather than relying on any software platform alone.

What to watch in 2026 and beyond

Several more jurisdictions are actively considering predictive scheduling legislation, including state-level proposals in Washington and Connecticut. The trend is consistent: employees are gaining more scheduling rights, and employers who wait for laws to pass before adapting their processes will find compliance harder and more expensive.

Building good scheduling discipline now, before your jurisdiction adopts a law, is far less disruptive than retrofitting your operations under a compliance deadline.

Frequently asked questions

Does federal law require predictive scheduling?

No federal predictive scheduling law currently exists in the US. Requirements come from state and local legislation, so coverage depends entirely on where your business operates and how many employees you have.

What is predictability pay?

Predictability pay is a premium an employer must pay when they change, cancel, or add to a posted shift within the required advance-notice window. The amount and calculation method vary by jurisdiction.

Do predictive scheduling laws apply to small businesses?

Most current laws set size thresholds, often 250 or 500 employees globally, so smaller independent businesses are frequently exempt. However, thresholds differ by jurisdiction and industry, so always confirm whether your specific business falls within scope.

Can employees waive predictive scheduling rights?

In some jurisdictions, employees can voluntarily waive certain protections in writing, such as accepting a clopening shift. However, these waivers are tightly regulated, and employers cannot pressure employees into signing them. Check local law for the specific rules in your city or state.

What records should I keep for compliance?

At a minimum, keep dated copies of posted schedules, a log of every change made after posting, the reason for each change, and documentation of whether the change was employer-initiated or employee-initiated. Retaining these records for at least three years is a reasonable baseline, though some jurisdictions specify longer retention periods.