In response to a concerted lobbying effort by the broader business community in Maryland, yesterday the state senate voted to delay implementation of the new Maryland paid sick leave law until July. The Healthy Working Families Act, vetoed by Governor Larry Hogan but which was overridden in both branches over the past few weeks, is…
Read More »Entrepreneur Magazine released its 39th annual Franchise 500 list and we can proudly report that Dunkin’ Donuts continues to enjoy recognition as one of the country’s best franchises, coming in at #3 on the list. For the first time in almost 20 years, McDonalds topped the ticket, edging out 7-Eleven, which has owned the #1…
Read More »Starbucks had a very difficult reception on Wall Street to its sales and earnings narrative released yesterday. Q1 US same store sales was plus 2, all average ticket, and zero traffic gains from last year. They repeated a now familiar story of weak afternoon and evening business, and declining foot traffic of units inside some…
Read More »
Good old 2017 ended with a bang, with the Trump Administration making good on its promises to axe a controversial ruling that Dunkin’ and other franchise owners have argued undermines the very foundations of franchising. The National Labor Relations Board has dumped the Obama-era joint-employer rule, which had sowed confusion and stirred fears of unionization…
Read More »We advised as recently as last week that Maryland could be next up in mandating paid sick leave for private employees and that caution became reality last week. The Maryland state senate followed the lead of the House of Delegates and overrode the veto of Governor Larry Hogan on legislation mandating paid sick leave for…
Read More »One issue that we can all expect to see being seriously deliberated in state houses throughout the nation is mandating the adoption and/or expansion of paid sick leave benefits by states and cities. To that point, the New Hampshire House of Representatives gave preliminary approval to legislation that will mandate up to 12 weeks’ paid…
Read More »In a similar vein, we’ve advised in past weeks of the new Paid Family Leave Law that took effect in New York this week. When it phases in fully in 2021, the law will require employers to provide 12 weeks paid leave at 67% of salary for employees to care for new children or sick…
Read More »There seems to be much debate still on the benefits of the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (Tax Reform), signed into law by President Trump shortly before Christmas, but our friends at SESCO Management make it clear that one benefit for business is a new employer credit for paid family and medical leave. The…
Read More »Notwithstanding some major improvements in the regulatory and legal environments as evidenced above, we still must remain diligent on other issues that can and will directly impact our businesses. Toward that end, and with the New Year just over a week away, we can’t be too hesitant in reminding our subscribers about the upcoming changes…
Read More »There may be much happening now in DC, but we must stay on top of the changes that are regularly taking effect at the state and local level – and ensuring that we are in compliance with the dictates. A good case in point is New York City, where “fair workweek laws” became effective just…
Read More »
