Michael S. Kaufman is the current chairman of the National Restaurant Association board of directors and co-president with Michael Sternberg of Enovo Restaurant Ventures LLC, which operates and licenses the Harry’s Tap Room brand. Before forming Enovo, Kaufman was president of the Dallas-based Metromedia Restaurant Group, which then included the Bennigan’s, Steak and Ale, Bonanza and Ponderosa chains. As a longtime member of the NRA, he has been politically active in the restaurant industry for many years.
Why should restaurateurs get involved politically?
Principally, because the amount of governmental action at the local, state and national levels has never been greater. We’ve seen lawmakers across the country who thought they could impose all sorts of new legislation in the areas of wages, health, nutrition and food safety. This is happening at an increased rate and speed, and given how fast people communicate through the Internet, whatever happens in one locality can spread like wildfire across the country.
Restaurateurs constrained and challenged by the current economy will say, “This is not my highest priority.” But over time if you’re not committed to being active, [the industry will] continue to encounter actions by local authorities that will make our economics even more challenging.
How can restaurateurs get involved?
One way restaurateurs can easily and productively get involved is to join their state restaurant association and in turn become members of the national association automatically. They will be supporting professionals across the country who are working powerfully together to detect, identify, understand and respond to local, state and federal initiatives.
What are the key issues?
Our No. 1 legislative concern on the federal level is card-check union organizing. We believe absolutely and unequivocally that the proposed legislation is the last thing America needs. Under the measure, unions could unionize workplaces much more easily through the elimination of secret ballots and through the imposition of an onerous binding arbitration procedure.
Any other issues?
A proactive proposal by the industry [the LEAN Act] for menu labeling is pending that would provide useful information to consumers as to nutritional and caloric content for restaurant companies of a certain size. Also, the NRA is active [in issues concerning] tax depreciation and immigration reform.
What is the downside of not getting involved?
Every vote counts, every restaurant counts. Many restaurateurs have close ties to local lawmakers on a community-by-community basis. They can demonstrate their presence as a key part of the community and what the implication is of a particular legislative proposal. It’s important that we show who we are and why certain proposals are either good or bad ideas.
The American public loves restaurants. What the public doesn’t generally understand is how we operate–the extent to which we offer first employment to so many and the tight economics under which we operate. So when ideas are proposed concerning unionization or wages or nutrition or anything else, they might sound like good ideas, but the impact is not understood. By getting involved restaurateurs can help explain these issues and help affect public opinion.
