At my job (pizza place, so maybe bad example), we have effectively only 2 night time managers, which means at the end of the week, whoever has the most hours goes home first, so that franchisee doesn't have to pay the extra money.

"so why not just close early if it costs owner too much to pay you?"

Well, because. Just because, that's all. Last time I cut orders at 5-or-10-to-close, the next day our owner (who I usually only see twice a year for MAYBE 20mins) came in and said I'd be fired if it happened again.

People with money don't give a single fraction of a flying freaky fuck about their employees. Unfortunately for me, I work in one of the (ten poorest) states in the US that enforces 'right-to-work' laws, which I recently learned, don't mean that you have the right to work, but instead means my employer is under no legal or contractual obligation to recognize, let alone pay Union fees.

Unionizing isn't illegal, but good luck finding anybody that will do anything pro-union in one of those places.