Catherwood LibraryILR School

Through the downturn, many employers turned to more sophisticated methods of scheduling employees, especially in labor-intense industries, based on forecasting customer demand and shorter shifts. The tactic known as ?scheduling on demand? relies on workers, often in low-wage frontline retail, food service, and service jobs, to be ready during the companies open hours to begin work at a moment?s notice should demand peak, and only work until demand has subsided, often for just a couple of hours. A new report from the Center for Law and Social Policy found that ?scheduling to demand? does save employers, but is exacerbating the problems of low-wage workers by introducing the inability to juggle multiple jobs with unpredictable hours for low pay. Some employers faced with similar dilemmas are choosing to take a different path: guaranteeing a certain number of hours per week, while maintaining some flexibility about when those hours are worked. Costco, for example, guarantees 24 hours per week for many employees and schedules those hours two weeks in advance. This practice is seen paying off in the work ethic and loyalty of Costco employees compared to others peers in the retail industry.