Warehouse distribution centers need to prepare for increased regulation over their use of employee production quotas, considering new laws passed, or being considered, in California, New York and elsewhere.
California enacted first-of-its-kind legislation on how employers can use productivity data in 2021, New York followed in 2022 with its Warehouse Worker Protection Act, and several other states are now considering similar laws.
Washington passed a similar law recently, which is still awaiting Governor Jay Inslee’s signature. Connecticut held a hearing on its own bill in March 2023. Illinois created a Warehouse Safety Standards Taskforce in January 2023 and Minnesota is considering its own bill that would address warehouse safety.
Common themes run throughout most of these laws
While this legislation varies by state, there are common themes running through most of these pending bills and laws, according to law firm Jackson Lewis. The majority of them are focused specifically on large distribution centers. For example, the California and New York laws apply only to employers with at least 100 employees at a single facility or at least 1,000 employees within the state.
Covered employers are typically required to provide written notice of the quota to employees when they’re hired or within 30 days of the respective law’s effective date. This notice must describe the quotas involved and explain what disciplinary actions could occur if an employee doesn’t meet the quota. The laws remain unclear on the level of detail employers must disclose to employees about quotas, some of which are determined based on sophisticated algorithms or detailed engineered labor standards.
Employees have the right under these laws to request their own productivity data and the aggregate productivity data of their co-workers, with California and New York offering “broad protection to employees who request this data.”
These laws also regulate the quotas themselves and prohibit any quota that could:
- prevent an employee from taking any required meal or rest breaks
- interfere with employees using restroom facilities, or
- cause compliance issues with occupational safety and health laws.
This means employers can’t “consider paid or unpaid breaks as ‘time on task’ or ‘productive time.'”
Jackson Lewis recommended that employers with distribution centers in California and New York ensure their productivity standards comply with the new laws in those states. Those with distribution centers in the other states may also want to prepare for the possibility of similar requirements coming soon.
