Posts tagged FAST act
California fast food restaurant owners warn that hiking $20 minimum wage will ‘cripple’ them
January 8, 2025 // The council, which consists of 10 members appointed by the governor, is empowered to raise the minimum wage by up to 3.5% — or the annual rate of inflation each year — beginning Jan. 1 of this year. The union representing fast food workers has accused restaurant owners of cutting employee hours in response to the wage increase — all but offsetting the hike in wages.
COMMENTARY: Like AB5, CA’s Fast-Food Minimum Wage Hike Results in Layoffs, Closures, and Higher Prices
April 4, 2024 // It certainly wasn't a victory for the consumer. First, the prices of fast food started to tick up, then Pizza Hut drivers were laid off. The FAST Act is now fully in effect, and so are the unintended consequences. Tuesday, April 2 saw reports of fast-food restaurants cutting hours, laying off workers, and some completely shuttering their businesses. Welcome to California, where a Big Mac combo will cost you $25.00 and be served to you by a robot. Stevie Wonder could have seen this coming; but hey, power to the people, and all that.
Commentary: Shades of AB5: Newsom Signs Imperfect AB610, the ‘FAST Act’ Wage Exemption
March 28, 2024 // What do airports, museums, event centers, and gambling establishments have in common? TONS of government regulations and tons of SEIU International employees. These workers are locked into their union wages and therefore safe anyway, as was intended. Just like AB5, these sweetheart exemptions were done under darkness and cover and engineered by SEIU International.
Why Is Panera Exempted From California’s New Minimum Wage Law?
March 4, 2024 // That exemption stands to benefit Greg Flynn, owner and CEO of the Flynn Restaurant Group, a conglomerate that operates more than 2,300 restaurants nationally and is the second-largest Panera franchisee in the world, according to the company's website. Flynn and Newsom go way back: Bloomberg reports that the two attended the same high school at the same time—Flynn was student body president during Newsom's freshman year—and the restaurateur has donated to Newsom's gubernatorial campaigns and bragged to colleagues about his close relationship with the governor.
Pizza Hut franchisees lay off more than 1,200 delivery drivers in California as restaurants brace for $20 fast-food wages
December 26, 2023 // Mark Kalinowski, a restaurant-industry analyst, wrote in a note this week that he expected "more harm to come" in various ways as fast-food chains "take action in an attempt to blunt the impact of higher labor costs." Chains such as Chipotle and McDonald's said they planned to pass the costs of higher wages in California to customers by raising menu prices. In 2022, Gov. Gavin Newsom of California signed the FAST Act into law. It called for the minimum wage for fast-food workers to increase to $22 an hour in 2023. But corporate chains such as McDonald's, Chipotle, and Chick-fil-A, as well as franchise advocacy groups, fought the law. A coalition of restaurant-industry organizations said the law could raise costs for fast-food restaurants by $3 billion. They rallied to get a referendum on the ballot.
Fast-food prices hiked after California ups minimum wage
November 13, 2023 // In that January article, I called this “the iron law of California progressivism: Claim that new laws will help the poor. When the actual effect turns out to be catastrophic for the poor, blame capitalism/markets/billionaires/racism, and expand government control of the business. Rinse, repeat, and promote as a national — even global — model for equity. And if Californians have anything to say about it, AB 257 will be coming to you, no matter where you live in the United States.” Indeed, Biden’s forever-acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su has already expressed her unbridled enthusiasm for California’s policy. That’s no surprise, either: Su was California’s secretary of labor, and is closely tied to the union leadership behind a number of execrable labor policies. Among the most notorious is AB 5, the law that banned independent contracting in key industries, including Uber drivers and trucking companies. When AB 257 emerged from the same fetid philosophical swamp, there was Su, now part of the Biden administration, telling the bill’s supporters, “The Department of Labor stands with you. The Biden-Harris Administration stands with you.”
Opinion: Julie Su’s confirmation would harm restaurants and app workers
May 24, 2023 // If Su’s policy preferences took effect, U.S. restaurants — 90 percent of which are small businesses — would face considerable cost increases and job losses. And 23 million U.S. workers–parents, veterans, students, caregivers, and many others who have chosen to earn with app-based platforms — could have their earning power greatly curtailed. We simply cannot take that risk when our economy already faces serious challenges from inflation, supply chain problems, and workforce issues. We want to work with the next secretary of Labor to help restaurant owners and employees, app-based workers, and our customers thrive. That’s why the next secretary must have a track record of listening to diverse viewpoints and respecting the kind of opportunity and flexibility our industries provide.
Senate panel advances Biden Labor nominee Julie Su
April 26, 2023 // “Today’s party-line vote is another reminder that Julie Su is no Marty Walsh, who advanced in a bipartisan 18-4 vote only two years ago,” said Michael Layman, a top lobbyist at the International Franchise Association, in a statement following Wednesday’s vote. The AFL-CIO is fighting back, running ads in Arizona and D.C. backing Su’s efforts to counter wage theft in California. The ads tell viewers that workers are “tired of getting ripped off by big corporations.” The labor federation is also mobilizing its members to lobby senators. “We’re going to defend Julie against these baseless corporate special interests attacks,” AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler told reporters last week. “Every senator, especially those that haven’t yet said that they’ll vote yes, needs to be aware of how much this confirmation means to working people’s lives.”
Biden Doubles Down on California Blundering With Julie Su Nomination
April 17, 2023 // In California, Su was secretary for the Labor and Workforce Development where she oversaw the Employment Development Department with deals involving unemployment insurance claims. She did not shine in this role, as even members of her own party will point out. California Democratic Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris of Laguna Beach, for instance, said that Su “has not done a good job at running the Employment Development Department and, as a result, has wasted billions of dollars and, more importantly, caused heartache for millions of Californians.” A report for the California Business & Industrial Alliance (CBIA) pointed out that a state auditor had “urged EDD to address its mailing system after millions of Social Security Numbers were included in a mailing sent to wrong addresses.” Unfortunately, “Under Su, the EDD did not prioritize addressing the auditor’s recommendation,” and thus when the COVID shutdowns happened, the system was dysfunctional and trust in her leadership was compromised. Su herself eventually admitted the department was “woefully unprepared” to handle those claims.
McDonalds President Says It Might Be ‘Impossible’ to Operate in These Key States
February 1, 2023 // While California has led the pack with fast-food worker protection movements, Virginia followed with a similar bill just six months later. This month, it introduced Virginia's House Bill 2478. While not committed to a specific minimum wage, the passed law would require a council of state legislators, elected officials, industry representatives and fast-food workers to get together and regularly oversee worker conditions and compensation.