San Francisco To Private Companies: Be Flexible, Or Pay

Under a new law, San Francisco will be the first city to mandate that private companies accommodate employees with children or other dependents more flexible schedules. Companies with more than 20 employees would be required to state a business reason for denying requests for changing hours, allowing telecommuting, or sharing job duties. Failure to abide by the law, which goes into effect Jan. 1, would come with a $50-per-employee, per day, fine.