The Labor Department proposed their long-awaited regulation on joint employer liability potentially clarifying the law for many employers. Matt Haller from the International Franchise Association stops by the podroom to shed light on what’s happening. And the City of Chicago held runoff elections this week and the progressive wing of the Democratic party did very well - including winning the mayor’s office. And the labor community was active this week protesting McDonald’s pivot on minimum wage claiming it doesn’t go far enough. We’ll talk about those stories and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

McDonald’s has single-handedly turned the minimum wage issue on its head with its announcement that it will no longer oppose minimum wage increases. We’ll have a long discussion getting to the bottom of why they did it, how they did it, and what it means going forward. And the gig economy employers are on the move. Uber and Lyft are literally driving the future of work conversation and traditional employers are getting left behind. We’ll take a look at that and what it may mean for the industry. We’ll talk about those stories and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

The unions are back at it. Another chain of burger joints has been targeted in Oregon. We’ll discuss the ramifications for the rest of the industry. Shake Shack is running a test in markets across the country, examining the pros and cons of moving to a four-day work week. We’ll take a look at how that may play out and potentially impact other brands. And we’ll talk to Jeremy Bess from Revenue Management Solutions about the operational challenges and opportunities of recycling at the unit level and what that may mean politically. We’ll talk about those stories and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

California is looking to require food handler certification for third-party delivery drivers and there are all kinds of implications, not the least of which is joint employer liability. And cities are increasingly getting into the anti-corporate game. We have two cities that are attempting to influence who your suppliers are. And how are we doing on the minimum wage front and what does a win look like these days? We’ll talk about those stories and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

It’s baaack. The dreaded EEO-1 form that companies have to submit to the EEOC divulging pay and gender data has been revived by a federal judge. What does this mean for companies and can the Administration do anything about it. And it's International Women’s Day and we’ll discuss the current state of play on gender issues relative to the industry. And it looks like another activist attorney general is taking aim at brands- this time on companies participating in the labor department’s voluntary wage compliance program. We’ll talk about those stories and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

The war for control of data is raging and restaurants are finding themselves in the middle of it - especially when it comes to third-party delivery. We’ll discuss what’s happening and why it matters. Also, legislation was introduced in the U.S. Senate that establishes pilot programs regarding portable benefits. We’ll discuss the implications. And artificial intelligence is working its way through the drive thru. We’ll take a look at what that may mean for brands. We’ll talk about those stories and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

Notch a win for the anti-corporate crowd. Amazon’s decision to pull out of New York City gives momentum to the populist wave sweeping both political parties. With Amazon, Walmart, Starbucks and now Disney in the crosshairs, could traditional restaurant brands be next? And speaking of Starbucks, we’ll discuss how his campaign is going so far and whether the business model is feeling the effects. And we’ll discuss a new study of how transportation and housing challenges are impacting employment. We’ll talk about those stories and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

The restaurant industry is about to get Uberized. Travis Kalanick is launching Cloud Kitchens, a worldwide network of food delivery kitchens. We’ll discuss the impacts to the traditional business model. Also, New York City is becoming a labor organizers dream. Now they are proposing legislation making it harder to fire employees. And lastly, this was a tough week for retail. The worst sales in 9 years, labor unrest at ToysRUs, Walmart loses a big court case and Amazon bails out of Queens. What is going on over in retail? We’ll talk about those stories and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

Format bans are in the news again. This time New Hampshire is going after chains but instead of taxing them, they are trying to repeal local preemption laws to outright ban them. We’ll take a look at that. Also, efforts are underway in states to eliminate the tip credit. We’ll assess how those efforts are going and who is winning that battle. And lastly, as we have been predicting for some time, a major state may be going down the road of portable benefits. Start spreading the news, it's New York. We’ll talk about those stories and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

Howard Schultz is running for President. Herman Cain may join the Federal Reserve Board. Are these the Glory Days for the restaurant industry or are we running headlong into a public examination of our business model? We’ll kick that around. And Republicans out West - in Wyoming of all places - are going after big companies. Does populism have Corporate America in its sights? And this is the 100th episode of Working Lunch and we’ll take a look at what has changed in the political environment since we got this thing started. We’ll talk about those stories and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.