America may run on Dunkin’, but New York City won’t let Dunkin’ run all over the law.
On Tuesday, Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced the filing of an enforcement petition against QSR Management LLC, a Dunkin’ franchisee that operates 21 locations across Staten Island, seeking monetary relief for about 1,000 workers, in addition to civil penalties for violating New York City labor laws.
The amount of the penalty has yet to be determined.
The petition, filed by the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protections (DCWP), alleges that QSR Management and its managing corporate officer, Ronny Nader, violated the rights of its employees under the Fair Workweek Law and Protected Time Off Law.
First passed in 2017, the city’s Fair Workweek Law requires employers to give workers a regular schedule that’s consistent week-to-week, provide them with a schedule 14 days in advance, and pay premiums for any schedule changes after that. The Protected Time Off Law, passed in 2014, guarantees workers access to paid and unpaid leave for illness, caregiving, and other needs.
The DCWP investigation, spurred by a complaint made by an employee, found that QSR Management committed thousands of violations of employees’ rights to receive a regular schedule since 2020. Under the law, each worker who was employed during that time is owed between $200 to $500 per violation, and workers may be entitled to financial relief for multiple violations per week.
According to the complaint filed by DCWP, employees were given shifts that varied day-to-day and week-to-week, without any advance notice, leaving them unable to reliably schedule other commitments outside of work.
Neither Dunkin nor QSR Management returned Documented’s request for comment.
This is the second time QSR Management has found itself in trouble with the city. In 2022, according to DCWP, it previously resolved a 2022 case involving one of its Dunkin’ locations, securing $187,000 in relief for workers.
“Today’s actions kick off the Mayor’s Tackle Corruption and Waste Week with a clear message. If DCWP sees you break the law, we will not hesitate to bring you to court – especially when it comes to repeat scofflaws, like QSR Management and Mr. Nader,” said Sam Levine, Commissioner of DCWP, in a statement shared with Documented. “Compliance is not optional.”
QSR Management is the third company this week that the mayor has announced labor enforcement actions against.
On Monday, the administration announced settlements with Dunkin’ and Taco Bell franchisee Salz Management LLC and premium fashion retailer Theory. The two settlements will provide more than 830 workers with more than $1.8 million to resolve violations of the Fair Workweek Law. In addition to restitution, the two companies will pay more than $176,000 in civil penalties and costs.
Since taking office on Jan. 1, the Mamdani administration has secured more than $8.5 million in restitution for New York City workers, including more than $500,000 for freelancers who were allegedly paid late by production company Splashlight and nearly $5 million for Uber Eats, Fantuan, and HungryPanda delivery workers.
“At their core, these actions are about restoring dignity on the job,” said Mayor Mamdani in a statement shared with Documented. “Every worker deserves a predictable schedule, something stable enough to plan a life around, to care for family, to show up for the people who depend on them. This city will not tolerate any corporation or franchisee that violates our Fair Workweek laws, or any of the hard-won labor protections that workers fought for and won. We will keep enforcing those laws, so that every New Yorker knows their rights and can count on this city to defend them.”
Since becoming law, 4,034 workers in New York have received an average of nearly $650 in restitution for Fair Workweek violations between 2018 and 2021. During that same period, DCWP has recovered nearly $2.6 million in restitution and another $500,000 in civil penalties.
Workers and employers can visit nyc.gov/workers or call 311 for more information to file a complaint. Undocumented workers are protected under the law, complaints may be filed anonymously, and retaliation is illegal.
