'We have no rights.' Frustrated with California wage laws, Moonstone Bistro in Redding cuts lunch service
'We have no rights.' Frustrated with California wage laws, Moonstone Bistro in Redding cuts lunch service
Moonstone Bistro, a popular fine-dining restaurant in west Redding, has announced they will stop serving lunch, citing California’s increased minimum wage...
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Edit: Before someone says something dumb. How did people survive before franchises again? Did everyone starve and die?
Not every restaurant survived then, either. If you got rid of franchises, you still wouldn't be getting rid of everyone who wants to run a restaurant. People will still choose one over another and the one people aren't choosing to patronize will go under.
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Just because it's independent doesn't mean the owner isn't just as greedy. Remember: every major corporation started off as a small, independent business. No business starts off as a megacorp.
They only become massive because nothing prevents them from doing so. Which is why I mentioned laws. Which laws? I don't know, I haven't thought about it enough. All I know is that for every year that I've been alive I've seen franchises grow and multiply while wages stagnate.
People say that they are doing easy jobs etc but those same people would lose their minds if every single underpaid food service worker decided to quit. "Where am I going to eat!" Sure they have an easy job but in the list of things people need, food is in the top 3.
I've lived through the same conditions myself, but I still have the advantage of being able to look at history and see that from 1955 when it started until the 80's, the average McDonald's franchise worker still was paid a living wage for their respective time periods.
The problem isn't the model of business. It's the greed of the people who run the business. The only laws necessary to fix this problem are keeping minimum wage up with inflation and the cost of living. If $16/hour isn't a living wage (such as it is in California), the minimum needs to be higher. If the business can not provide that, they can not afford the cost of doing business and deserve to go out of business.
The wage problem is not caused by the franchise model. It's not even exclusive to franchised businesses; it's practically every single business across all sectors. From retail and customer service, to tech and medical care positions. If they're not compelled to pay you enough to survive, they won't. The libertarian idea that businesses will self-regulate is a delusion that doesn't happen in reality. They must be compelled through law to be safe and fair or they're just going to do whatever they can get away with.