Franchise business executives, franchisees and franchise suppliers must always be keenly aware of the pulse of the industry.  The March issue of Franchising World presents leading industry executives  who will guide you through some of the issues fac

Yesterday, in addition to announcing the final regulations to implement the Affordable Care Act, the U.S. Treasury Department announced that it would delay some employer mandate requirements for some employers for one additional year.  Treasury had announced last July that it would delay the entire employer mandate until 2015 for all employers.

With the current shutdown in Washington, Fox Business examines the problems that could arise in the franchise industry if people weren’t able to get along and work together.

This week, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation hosted its Business Civic Leadership Center (BCLC) 2013 Corporate Responsibility Conference, effectively themed The Network Effect: How Business Drives Progress. It was an opportunity for businesses and leaders of corporate responsibility to convene around a variety of issues including energy and water use, woman’s economic empowerment, nutrition, and disaster resiliency.

Entering its second week, the government shutdown continues to hurt the U.S. economy. Now, with the debt ceiling approaching, the International Franchise Association reiterates its call for Congress to pass a Continuing Resolution to fund the federal

Thursday, the House Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions held a hearing to address the future of union organizing and one particular strategy to build employee support for unionization, worker centers. Worker centers were examined

The effort to pass patent litigation reform was recently reignited and has rapidly picked up momentum over the first half of the year.  The debate this Congress has a distinctly different tone from the debate over the America Invents Act, though.  Rather than the traditional industry divide of “big tech vs. big PhRMA,” there has been a broad based, cross-industry call for patent litigation reform, as evidenced by a letter to Congressional leadership from 50 trade associations stating that something must be done now.

IFA’s efforts to defeat Senate Bill 610 in California have been successful.  Last night, Senate Bill 610 was defeated for the year as the sponsor of the bill pulled the legislation off today’s California Assembly Business, Professions & Consumer Protections Committee docket when it became clear there was scant support for the bill by the Committee’s 10 Democrats and four Republicans.  

Yesterday, the Health Subcommittee of the House Committee on Ways & Means held a hearing to examine the one-year delay of the Affordable Care Act’s employer mandate.  Last Tuesday, the Administration announced that it would be delaying the implementation until 2015.

Recently, legislation was introduced in both the House and Senate that would change the definition of a full-time employee from an average of 30 hours per work to 40 hours per week.  Rep. Todd Young (R-IN) introduced the house version, H.R. 2575, and a companion bill, S. 1188, was introduced by Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Joe Donnelly (D-IN).