Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, FRANCHISING & DISTRIBUTION NEWS: IFA supports group opposing NLRB’s expansion of joint employer definition, (Feb 11, 2015)
Organizations Mentioned:International Franchise Association | National Labor Relations Board
By John W. Arden, J.D., LLM.
The Coalition to Save Local Businesses—a business group formed to oppose the National Labor Relations Board’s expansion of “joint employer” of franchisee employees to include franchisors—was praised by Steve Caldeira, President and CEO of the International Franchise Association (IFA), in a statement issued yesterday.
“The recent and pending actions redefining the long-standing and widely accepted definition of what constitutes a joint employer by the NLRB clearly represents an existential threat to the franchise business model,” Caldeira said. “The pending recommendation by the NLRB’s General Counsel would upend the 780,000 locally-owned franchise businesses across the U.S. and in turn jeopardize the 8.9 million jobs they directly support.”
“As more franchisees learned about the NLRB actions to undermine their local businesses, the more they sought an opportunity to express their disagreement with the NLRB and engage with their elected representatives,” he explained. “The Coalition to Save Local Businesses provides them with that platform and we’re proud to be part of it.”
The Coalition intends to inform members of Congress about the potentially devastating impact that redefining the joint employer standard would have on the U.S. economy, according to the IFA.
The expansion of the joint employer definition would increase franchisor responsibilities and make them more liable for franchisees’ actions, potentially leading to the consolidation of franchisors and forcing franchisees into a role similar to that of a store manager, the IFA predicted.
“There’s no upside to upsetting the long-standing employer-employee relationship,” Caldeira said. “In fact, these new regulations from the NLRB would diminish entrepreneurial investment, stifling job growth and economic activity in communities from coast to coast.”
The IFA is the world’s oldest and largest organization representing franchising worldwide. Its members include franchise companies in more than 300 different business format categories, individual franchisees, and companies that support the industry in marketing, law, technology, and business development.
News: FranchisingDistribution