COVID-19
Restaurant Revitalization Fund – Next week, the U.S. Senate will vote on a $48 billion small business relief package of which $40 billion would be directly allocated to replenish the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF). It is unclear whether there are the 60 votes necessary for passage, although the bipartisan sponsors, Sens. Cardin (D-MD) and Wicker (R-MS) remain optimistic. The house passed similar legislation earlier this year. More details.
Paid Leave
Delaware – The governor signed into law a new statewide parental leave program, making Delaware the 11th state with such a program. It will provide up to 80 percent of wages (or $900, whichever is less) for eligible workers for up to 12 weeks per year for parental leave, and six weeks over two years for caregiving and medical leave. Employer and employee contributions to the program will begin in 2025. The benefits will be available beginning in 2026. The program will be funded through a 0.8 percent payroll contribution split between the employer and the employee. More details.
Labor Policy
NLRB – The regional director of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in the New York-area issued a complaint accusing Starbucks of 29 unfair labor practice charges that included over 200 violations of the National Labor Relations Act. To date, Starbucks Workers United has filed more than 100 unfair labor practice charges against Starbucks. The company has filed two against the union. In another win for the union, the NLRB has petitioned a federal court for injunctive relief for seven former Starbucks employees in Memphis, Tennessee who the agency says were unlawfully fired for exercising their right to form a union. The NLRB is accusing the company of directing a wide variety of coercive measures at its employees including disciplining the employee responsible for starting the campaign, more closely supervising its employees, closing the area of the store on days organizers had previously invited the public and customers to come to show support for the campaign, and removing all pro-union materials from the community bulletin board inside the store. More details.
Labor Activism
Amazon – An appeals court in New York dismissed New York Attorney General Letitia James’ lawsuit against Amazon over its coronavirus safety protocols. The appellate court said in its ruling that federal labor law preempted state labor law, and the NLRB “should serve as the forum” for disputes arising from conduct that’s protected or prohibited by federal labor law, not the states. It also said the lawsuit’s efforts to require the retailer to comply with New York’s COVID-19 workplace guidelines was dismissed as moot because the restrictions in place at the time have since been lifted. More details.
One Fair Wage – A small group of shareholders backed by the union-supported One Fair Wage campaign is calling on companies, including Denny’s and Dine, to study paying restaurant staff the full minimum wage plus tips in an effort to phase out the tip credit. Two orders of nuns are pushing the effort arguing the federally mandated $2.13 hourly wage for tipped workers has led to poverty, sexual harassment, and racial inequality. They want companies to study and report back on what would happen if they increased base pay to the federal minimum with tips on top. The faith organizations own more than $2,000 of stock in Denny’s and Dine, respectively. More details.
Starbucks – Following a meeting between prominent union organizers and President Biden, the company condemned the White House for meeting with union activists and demanded equal time for the White House to meet with Starbucks’ employees who were not sympathetic to organizing efforts. Fourteen U.S. Senators hit back, calling upon Starbucks to stop its “anti-union tactics.” To date, around 250 stores are in the process of holding a union election with 67 units having voted to unionize. Ten have rejected the union, and four outcomes are still undecided. More details.
Study – The Service Employees Industrial Union (SEIU) and Fight for $15 released a survey that concludes wage theft is a pervasive problem in the industry. According to the report, 85 percent of the more than 400 survey respondents in dozens of California cities said they experienced at least one form of labor law violation, such as insufficient overtime pay or not getting compensated for hours worked off the clock. The survey was released as part of a rally to draw attention and support to the Fast Food Standards & Accountability Act (FAST ACT) as well as federal wage theft legislation. More details.
Key Takeaways
- Inflation and cost-of-living adjustments may trigger a wave of minimum wage increases in July and January (when automatic increases typically kick in). This week, California announced its minimum wage will jump up to $15.50/hr by Jan. 1, 2023. Expect increases in other jurisdictions as well.
- The labor community escalated their campaign in California around AB-257, the Fast Food Standards & Accountability (FAST) Act. The legislation, among other provisions, would create a Fast Food Sector Council to set wage and benefit rates and other workplace standards for quick service restaurants. This concept – often referred to as sectoral bargaining – is popular among labor advocates and this legislation is the SEIU’s number one priority in the state. Action on the bill is likely to occur in the next few weeks and brands need to aggressively continue to contact targeted legislators to help them understand the significant impacts of the bill.
Podcast
Check out our Working Lunch podcast each week that includes further analysis into these legislative issues, policy, politics and much more. You can find Working Lunch on the Restaurant Business online website, SoundCloud, iTunes and Spotify.