Trump issues tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China

The president ordered an additional 10% duty on goods from China and 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico. The immediate impact on restaurant operators is unclear. 

By Philip Neuffer • Updated Feb. 1, 2025

Brian Niccol wants to double Starbucks’ US footprint

A host of changes to stores and operations could help Starbucks escape its sales trouble, and executives are already planning the company’s next move.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Jan. 30, 2025

Trump shakes up NLRB, cans Democratic member Wilcox in ‘unprecedented’ move

The move was criticized as illegal by congressional Democrats and could result in backlogs for the labor board, which now lacks a quorum.

By Ryan Golden • Jan. 29, 2025

Miso Robotics develops smaller, faster Flippy

Its newest robotic fry station, which White Castle is testing, is more expensive than, but half the size of, previous iterations.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Jan. 29, 2025

Starbucks warns of corporate layoffs in March

CEO Brian Niccol framed forthcoming job cuts as a way to increase efficiency and accountability and reduce organizational complexity.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Jan. 21, 2025

P.F. Chang’s drops lawsuit claiming UKG lost, destroyed employee data

The restaurant chain sued in 2022 claiming that the HR vendor had provided “false hope” that it could recover some of the chain’s deleted information.

By Ryan Golden • Jan. 17, 2025

Shake Shack’s CFO talks 1,500-unit goal, drive-thru and restaurant optimization

Katie Fogerty is confident that the burger chain, once only in New York City, can reach its next big target through labor model updates, drive-thru optimization and profitability improvements.

By Julie Littman • Jan. 17, 2025

Starbucks reverses open-door policy as it pursues coffeehouse environment

Under the new policy, customers will have to make a purchase if they want to hang out in Starbucks coffee shops or use its bathrooms.

By Kristen Doerer • Jan. 14, 2025

McDonald’s cools on DEI, shifts to ‘global inclusion’

The shift in strategy comes as a result of work done last year, McDonald’s said, including a “comprehensive Civil Rights Audit.”

By Caroline Colvin • Jan. 7, 2025

Inside Starbucks’ very long, very bad 2024

Traffic declines and labor strife kept the chain mired in trouble despite a CEO switch up and product launches aimed at reviving its fortunes.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Jan. 2, 2025

Starbucks Workers United launches multi-day strike

Beginning in Los Angeles, Chicago and Seattle, the union will expand limited strikes until Christmas Eve, potentially impacting hundreds of stores.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Dec. 20, 2024

FTC excludes restaurants from junk fee rule

In another regulatory victory for restaurants, the Federal Trade Commission backtracked on including restaurant fees in its price transparency rule.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Dec. 19, 2024

Grubhub to pay $25M in FTC settlement

The Federal Trade Commission and the Illinois Attorney General alleged the company deceived customers with junk fees and added restaurants to the platform without permission.

By Julie Littman • Dec. 18, 2024

Starbucks Workers United members vote to authorize strike

While bargaining has progressed, the union said the company hasn’t presented a comprehensive economic framework.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Dec. 17, 2024

DOL withdraws tip credit rule

The news comes months after the 5th Circuit vacated the U.S. Department of Labor’s effort to institute an “80/20” framework for dual-job workers.

By Ryan Golden • Dec. 16, 2024

Starbucks increases parental leave

Improving its benefits and reputation as an employer are key to the brand’s long-term turnaround, CEO Brian Niccol said.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Dec. 16, 2024

DoorDash to require 150K workers to verify IDs weekly

The delivery platform framed the more stringent verification policies as a way to improve consumer and merchant peace of mind.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Dec. 13, 2024

Base pay has grown for restaurant workers: report

A steady rise in base wages has shrunk tips as a proportion of compensation, but the median tipped worker still gets $14.48 an hour in tips, per ADP.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Dec. 10, 2024

Starbucks scheduling tools crippled by Blue Yonder outage

A ransomware attack against the software vendor has pushed the coffee chain to temporarily rely on manual scheduling to ensure workers are paid for hours.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Nov. 26, 2024

Waffle House claims NLRB process is unconstitutional

The casual chain has faced union organizing activity for over a year, and now wants the court to weaken the agency tasked with regulating labor law.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Nov. 22, 2024

$35K overtime salary threshold back in effect

A federal judge ruled that the Department of Labor’s 2024 rule exceeded the agency’s authority and is unlawful.

By Ginger Christ • Nov. 18, 2024

Chipotle defrauded investors with inconsistent meal sizes, says plaintiff seeking class action

The case is an example of securities lawsuits run amok, a directors and officers liability law specialist says. 

By Robert Freedman • Nov. 14, 2024

Captive audience meetings are unlawful, NLRB says

The meetings, a common strategy for employers during union drives, “have a reasonable tendency to interfere with and coerce employees” in the exercise of their rights, the Board decided.

By Emilie Shumway • Nov. 13, 2024

KFC sues Church’s Texas Chicken over ‘original recipe’ ads

KFC claims Church’s use of the marketing phrase will deceive customers into thinking they are buying items from KFC.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Nov. 13, 2024

DoorDash to pay $11.3M in Illinois tip settlement

The settlement will fund payments to as many as 79,000 workers who completed deliveries on the app from 2017 to 2019.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • Nov. 12, 2024