Wages
Seattle, WA – The city council passed legislation, known as the “Pay Up Bill”, extending the city’s existing minimum wage of $17.27/hr to app-based delivery drivers, who were not previously covered by the law. The new rate for drivers will take effect in Jan. 2023. Seattle is now the first US city to set a minimum wage for app-based delivery drivers. More details.
Labor Policy
California – The assemblypassed legislation that would bar employers from firing employees or deny job applicants who test positive for cannabis. The bill would still allow employers to use saliva tests to look for active Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the intoxicating compound in weed products. The bill barely passed the assembly and faces a steep, uphill battle in the senate where similar legislation has previously died. Similar legislation failed to advance this year in Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, Washington, and West Virginia. More details.
Annapolis, MD – Language has been included in the preliminary 2023 fiscal city budget that would allocate $800,000 to pilot a Universal Basic Income program. Under the proposal, the city would award $500/month to 100 families, using money the city received from the American Rescue Plan Act – federal money allocated through the COVID-relief packages that must be spent over the next two years. The sponsor indicated that the program would be modeled on a similar initiative in Stockton, California that proponents say has proven families are properly using the money for food, housing and to take time off from lower-paying jobs and apply for better-paying work. Neighboring Baltimore City is also running a trial UBI program. A similar proposal was debated last year and ultimately was voted down. More details.
Labor Activism
California – Next Thursday, June 9th, fast food workers will demonstrate statewide in support of Assembly Bill 257, the Fast Food Accountability and Standards (FAST) Recovery Act. Among other provisions, it would create a Fast Food Sector Council that would establish 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. The protests are being organized by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and its Fight for $15 and a Union campaign and scheduled to coincide with a hearing on the bill next week in the Senate Committee on Labor, Employment & Retirement. The bill will likely advance out of that committee but there are at least two other committee stops before going to the senate floor. More details.
Çhicago, IL – Local 1220 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) has filed a petition for a union election covering workers at five Intelligentsia units in Chicago, plus its warehouse. If accepted by the National Labor Relations Board, the petition could lead to an election that decides if the workers unionize. The IBEW’s approach differs from the national campaign the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is waging against Starbucks, which seeks representation on a store-by-store basis. More details.
Missoula, MT – Workers at a local coffee shop, Black Coffee Roasting Company, voted 7-2 for union representation. The group, calling themselves the Third Wave Workers of Missoula, had earlier this year successfully bargained for higher wages and paid time off. At that time, the management team agreed to bump their pay from $10/hr to $13/hr as well as institute a new leave policy. Despite those concessions, the workers went through the formal organizing process. More details.
Starbucks – The Workers United union backing organizing efforts at Starbucks is creating a $1 million fund to cover lost pay for baristas who go on strike, giving workers more leverage in their fight to unionize. Once it’s established, the strike fund could lead to more frequent and longer-lasting strikes since baristas won’t have to worry about the near-term financial repercussions. Workers United is an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). To date, over 280 stores in 38 states are in the process of holding a union election with 107 units having voted to unionize, 13 having rejected the union, and six outcomes still undecided. More details.
Scheduling
Evanston, IL – A hearing was held in the city council regarding a proposed mandated scheduling ordinance similar to the existing law in neighboring Chicago. That ordinance requires covered employers give workers a written estimate of days and hours of work prior to or upon employment, post work schedules at least 10 days in advance, give workers an hour of extra pay for any shift changes made with less than 10 days notice and ensure workers receive 50% of their pay for any lost hours for shift changes made less than 24 hours before the shift starts. No vote was taken on the ordinance. More details.
Sustainability
New York – Legislation to establish an Extended Producer Responsibility program in New York is likely dead for the year as the annual legislative session adjourns this week. If passed, the bill would have established an EPR program for packaging and a packaging responsibility fund. Producers would have been required to, either individually or collectively, change packaging designs to reduce waste, pay fees based on the amount of packaging material used and “be responsible for packaging waste disposal” by providing “widespread, convenient and equitable access” to recycling, at a level equal to that of municipal waste. The language was originally included in the state budget but later taken out and introduced as free-standing legislation. The issue remains a priority for the governor and will likely be reintroduced next year. More details.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
McDonald’s – On the heels of an approved shareholder resolution calling for a civil rights audit, the company announced that it has hired a third-party firm to conduct a civil rights assessment. Last November, in partnership with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the SOC investment group called on McDonald’s to conduct a civil rights audit in the wake of controversial comments by its CEO that were made public. SOC, an acronym for “Strategic Organizing Center,” describes its mission as “holding corporations and their leadership accountable for irresponsible and unethical corporate behavior and excessive executive pay, reflecting the long-term interests of workers and their families invested in union pension funds.” The group is alleging that the company’s business practices do not match its statements made last year in the wake of protests following the death of George Floyd. More details.
Key Takeaways
- The creation of a fund by Starbucks Workers United to support striking workers is an important escalation in the ongoing battle. Not only does it serve to bolster workers who may be undecided when it comes to participating in workplace walkouts and other actions, but the dollars themselves almost certainly came from the SEIU signaling their continued commitment to seeing this campaign through. Brands should take note of this development.
- Significant data continues to show that urban cores are still struggling to recover from the economic consequences of the pandemic and some may never return to normal. Occupancy rates are still far below pre-pandemic levels and, as a result, the bars, restaurants and other small businesses that serve those commuters and residents continue to go under. As such, there is a widening gap between struggling independent restaurants and larger chains, some of which came through the pandemic stronger. That growing economic disparity will create equally widening political and policy disagreements putting our industry trade associations in difficult positions. Larger brands need to be aware that supporting struggling independents may continue being the top priority of many of their traditional industry advocacy organizations.
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.