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Improving health and economic security by reducing work schedule uncertainty

Author

Listed:
  • Kristen Harknett

    (a Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94143;)

  • Daniel Schneider

    (b Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138;)

  • Véronique Irwin

    (c Department of Sociology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-1980)

Abstract

Alongside wages, work schedules are a fundamental component of job quality, yet work schedules are largely unregulated in the US labor market. In 2017, Seattle became the second large US city to pass fair workweek legislation. Seattle’s Secure Scheduling ordinance aims to increase schedule predictability by requiring employers to provide 2 wk notice of work schedules, among other provisions. Our paper shows that Seattle’s law not only increased schedule predictability but also improved subjective well-being, sleep quality, and economic security. The law had no effect on reports of psychological distress. Using the natural experiment afforded by Seattle’s fair workweek law, we provide causal evidence that uncertainty about work time has harmful effects on worker happiness, sleep quality, and material hardship.

Suggested Citation

  • Kristen Harknett & Daniel Schneider & Véronique Irwin, 2021. "Improving health and economic security by reducing work schedule uncertainty," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 118(42), pages 2107828118-, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:nas:journl:v:118:y:2021:p:e2107828118
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Nils Backhaus, 2022. "Working Time Control and Variability in Europe Revisited: Correlations with Health, Sleep, and Well-Being," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-19, November.

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