Health concernsHealth concerns

Robin Lee Allen

Call it a pandemic of sorts.

Paid-sick-leave initiatives are breaking out nationwide, with the state of Connecticut and the city of Seattle becoming the latest jurisdictions to join San Francisco and Washington, D.C., in mandating paid leave for full- and part-time employees. Meanwhile, a number of other cities and states are considering such measures, which would guarantee pay to employees forced to miss work because of illness.

Beginning on page 1 and continuing in the Business Intel section, we dig into what’s fueling interest in paid sick leave — the scope of the movement may surprise you — and the conflicting passions it raises among supporters dedicated to making sure the sick stay home without penalty and opponents who insist it will weaken restaurant margins, operations and service.

We also look into the health of franchisor and franchisee relations in this issue’s Special Report. While we’ve recently seen several high-profile lawsuits pitting the franchisors and franchisees of large national chains against one another, there also has been an increasing sense of franchise glasnost as both camps work to put their differences behind them and get back to their shared goal of making money. That story starts on page 1 and jumps to the Special Report section in Business Intel.

That’s not to say the road ahead is necessarily a smooth one. The relentless downturn continues to shake up some businesses, with the number of bankruptcies inching up to levels that rival those last seen in 2008. Since summer, at least seven restaurant companies have sought Chapter 11 protection from creditors. In the Finance section, we look at the one-two-three punch of high commodity costs, slowed consumer spending and hefty debt pressures that has an increasing number of operators throwing themselves on the mercy of the bankruptcy courts.

On a lighter note, in the Marketing section we dissect the second annual Dance Your Queso Off contest at Moe’s Southwest Grill. Read about how the contest, which encouraged Moe’s fans to upload videos of themselves expressing their love for the chain’s queso appetizer, boosted traffic.

While we’re talking about love, Americans’ infatuation with the burger remains powerful. Consumption is on the rise, according to research firm Technomic Inc., and better-burger concepts continue to sprout up across the land. In the Food & Beverage section we analyze the meats that help build memorable burgers.

Since it’s fall, it’s conference time, and Nation’s Restaurant News has been on the circuit. Early September found us learning at the Women’s Foodservice Forum’s Executive Summit, a gathering of about 250 executives that is recapped in the Community section toward the back of the issue. And in Operations we revisit the 6th annual Food Safety Symposium, an invitation-only event sponsored by Ecolab and produced by NRN. About 50 representatives from some of the nation’s largest restaurant companies came together to share best practices on such topics as produce, health department inspections and allergens.

The group also heard from renowned attorney Bill Marler of Marler Clark in Seattle, who first rose to prominence in 1993 when he successfully represented a young victim of the foodborne-illness outbreak linked to undercooked hamburgers at Jack in the Box. In ensuing years Marler has taken on such other restaurant companies as Chili’s, Chi-Chi’s, Golden Corral, KFC, Sizzler and Wendy’s.

Marler said the restaurant industry has gotten smarter since 1993, with incidences of E. coli outbreaks related to beef declining and more operators now including indemnity clauses in their contracts, requiring vendors to pay for any loss or damage that might be caused by a problem with their product.

And while other persistent health issues and economic factors may be leaving some readers feeling a bit unwell, that’s at least something they can still feel pretty good about.

Contact Robin Lee Allen at [email protected].