March 23 (Reuters) – New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s office said on Monday that Taco Bell and Dunkin’ franchisees have agreed to pay more than $1.5 million to settle claims brought by New York City, which said managers at its two restaurants violated a local law that requires fast food companies to give employees advance notice of their schedules and other protections.
Mamdani, who took office in January, campaigned in part on strengthening enforcement of worker protection laws.
According to the city’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, Saltz Management LLC frequently failed to adequately notify workers of their schedules, pay extra wages for “closed” shifts, required workers to close the store at night and reopen it the next morning, and make available shifts available to existing workers before hiring new workers, among other actions.
The city also announced Monday that it would file a lawsuit against another Dunkin’ franchisee, QSR Management LLC, and its executive director, Ronny Nader, alleging the company violated scheduling laws for about 1,000 employees at 21 Dunkin’ stores in Staten Island, New York City. In 2022, the city required the franchisee to pay benefits to more than 100 workers.
Neither franchisee responded to requests for comment by press time.
In December, New York City announced that Starbucks would pay $38.9 million to settle claims that it violated the city’s scheduling laws. Then-Mayor Eric Adams’ office said it was the largest settlement involving worker protections in the city’s history.
The day the Starbucks settlement was announced, Mamdani praised the agreement during a news conference with Sen. Bernie Sanders at a picket line of striking Starbucks workers.
Yum Brands and Inspire Brands, the parent companies of Taco Bell and Dunkin’ respectively, did not respond to requests for comment.
New York City was one of the first U.S. cities to restrict “on-call,” a practice in which retail, fast-food and other service businesses call in employees or cancel shifts without advance notice. Oregon has passed similar laws, as well as Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco and several other U.S. cities.
In 2025, the city opened 57 investigations into possible violations of scheduling laws by fast-food employers, according to public data.
Business groups have criticized the laws, saying they are unworkable and could lead to layoffs.
(Reporting by Waylon Cunningham; Editing by William McLean)
