FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Jenna Weisbord, 310-995-0839
jweisbord@franchise.org
IFA LAUDS DOMINO’S DECISION BY CALIFORNIA SUPREME COURT
WASHINGTON, Aug.29, 2014 — International Franchise Association President & CEO Steve Caldeira, CFE, released the following statement after the California Supreme Court held that a franchisor, Domino’s, could not be held responsible for a sexual harassment charge against the manager of one of its franchisees.
“The California Supreme Court allowed reason to reign when it reversed an appeals court decision that would have allowed a jury to hold Domino’s responsible for an alleged infraction by the manager of one of its franchisees. Franchisees are independent, small-business owners who have complete control over who they hire and how they manage their employees.Decades of legal and regulatory precedent dictate that the corporations from which franchisees license their brands are separate from the franchisees as it relates to employment matters. With this decision by the California Supreme Court, this fact has been affirmed.”
“Unfortunately, the Domino’s case isn’t an isolated incident. Labor unions led by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) have been working through the courts, city councils, state legislatures and federal regulatory bodies to redefine franchising in a way that would benefit them and hurt small businesses and the overall U.S.economy. The SEIU is determined to exhaust every means available to persuade government authorities to declare that entire chains are single entities, rather than the separate,locally-owned small businesses that they actually are. The reason is simple as it is far easier for the SEIU to unionize large entities rather than thousands of smaller,individual units. But as the California Supreme Court ruling shows, facts are stubborn things. Franchisees are not part of the corporations to which they pay initial fees and ongoing royalties.”
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About the International Franchise Association
The International Franchise Association is the world’s oldest and largest organization representing franchising worldwide. Celebrating over 50 years of excellence, education and advocacy, IFA works through its government relations and public policy, media relations and educational programs to protect, enhance and promote franchising. Through its media awareness campaign highlighting the theme, Franchising: Building Local Businesses, One Opportunity at a Time, IFA promotes the economic impact of the more than 825,000 franchise establishments, which support nearly 18 million jobs and $2.1 trillion of economic out put for the U.S. economy. IFA members include franchise companies in over 300 different business format categories, individual franchisees and companies that support the industry in marketing, law and business development.”
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