Government AffairsThe FRANMAC Legislative Conference was a success! We had a record number of franchisees on the Hill to visit with thier Congressmen and find out more on current legislations. Click here for more information.
If you have questions about Government Affairs, please contact Mark Peterson, GAC Chairman.
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LEGISLATIVE UPDATES
Call to Action: Stop Card Check by Regulation
7-28-11
Organized labor and their allies in the federal government are trying to enact “card check” through regulation.
Regulators appointed by the Obama administration at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and Department of Labor have proposed two new rules that threaten employers’ ability to seek and retain legal counsel and properly discuss union organizing drives with employees. The effect will be to make a mockery of workplace elections and impose “card check” on employees and employers by regulation.
Working with the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, we are pleased to provide you with an easy way to contact federal agencies to express your opposition and inform your members of Congress. Please take two minutes to tell your elected lawmakers to stop “card check” by regulation, stop the NLRB’s outrageous prosecution in the Boeing case and stop “micro-unions.”
Fed Issues final Debit Interchange Cap; Limits Lower Than Initially Expected
7-7-11
Under a final rule issues last week by the Federal Reserve Board, swipe fees that banks charge businesses when customers pay by debit will be limited to 21 cents per transaction. The Fed's rule came after restaurants and retailers successfully beat back a last minute effort by the banking industry to persuade Congress to delay the rules for up to a year.
The final rule was a mixed result for some retailers upset that the 21 cent cap was higher than the 12 cent limit the Fed initially proposed. Businesses have been paying an average of 44 cents per transaction.
The Government Affairs Committee has asked Yum! to provide an update on how much Franchisees can expect to save in debit fees when the Fed's new 21 cent limit goes into effect on October 1.
Call for Action! Debit Interchange Reform Petition
6-1-11
Congress could vote as early as next week (June 6) to delay or water down the important debit interchange reforms enacted last year as part of the financial reform bill. The FRANMAC Government Affairs Committee is working with allied organizations in the restaurant and retail industries to ensure these reforms are implemented as scheduled by July 21. We oppose all efforts to delay or stop these new rules. Please help us by signing the enclosed petition today!
Union Election Legislation
3-16-11
There was a welcome development in the debate over card check last week as a bill was introduced in the House to guarantee the right of workers to a secret ballot in union elections. Both issues have been at the forefront of the Committee’s legislative agenda the past two years.
Under H.R. 972, the Secret Ballot Protection Act, introduced by Rep. Phil Roe (R-TN), union organizers would be required to obtain 50% of the vote in a secret ballot election before employers would have to recognize the union for collective bargaining purposes. Enactment of the bill would therefore ban card check recognition and prevent the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) from implementing a card check system by regulation.
While Taco Bell Franchisees have been very active in opposing card check in the form of the Employee Free Choice Act, and should continue to do so, this new bill presents an opportunity to go on the offense and support passage of an employee guarantee of a secret ballot.
This bill could conceivably pass in the House of Representatives at some point this Congress due to the recent change of control there. However, it would likely face an uphill battle in the Senate where neither side in the card check debate currently has the 60 votes necessary to ensure passage of a card check-related bill.
H.R. 972 currently has 19 cosponsors. A copy of the bill and complete list of original cosponsors can be found on this link.
