Twenty-one states have joined forces in a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Labor’s new overtime rules. The attorneys general of Texas and Nevada filed the suit September 20 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, calling the overtime regulations “illegal.” The lawsuit challenges the legal basis of the rules’ automatic update…

The labor force is getting legal force on its side in Seattle. New scheduling rules for hourly retail and foodservice workers are going into effect after the City Council unanimously approved a new law September 19 requiring employers to schedule shifts 14 days in advance and pay workers extra for certain last-minute scheduling changes. Seattle,…

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio is working on legislation that should help curb the unpredictable schedules of the 65,000 hourly workers in NYC. Two weeks ago, in front of a Brooklyn McDonald’s, the mayor announced the Fair Workweek legislation, which would require employers to release employee schedules a minimum of two weeks in…

The recipients of FER’s 2017 Industry Excellence Awards for the Dealer category have been unveiled. Two dealerships and two individuals have been recognized for excellence in areas including, honesty, transparency and integrity in dealing with employees, suppliers and customers; deeply knowledgeable management and personnel; consistency and excellence in execution; creativity and innovation; and making a…

Heritage Foodservice Group has hired industry veteran Tom Szafranski as Executive V.P.- Commercial Business Development.  Szafranski is directing the Chain, Service Agent and International business units for Heritage Parts U.S.  He also is taking the lead in orchestrating the Fort Wayne, Ind., organization’s OEM engagement initiatives. Most recently, Szafranski served as President of ITW Food…

Autumn isn’t just time for football and college applications, it’s time for foodservice equipment manufacturers to apply for the 2017 Kitchen Innovations Awards. The NRA program, now in its 13th year, recognizes and celebrates meaningful advancements in foodservice equipment and technology that specifically improve the back of the house and benefit operators. The most groundbreaking submissions…

Thanks to support from FEDA’s Diamond Donors, the association’s Education Foundation is once again offering scholarships as an incentive for dealer employees to pursue Certified Foodservice Professional and ServSafe certifications. Earning the designations strongly boost equipment dealers’ professionalism and credentials in the foodservice industry. Upon earning the CFSP or ServSafe certification in 2016, dealers can…

A number of you kindly wrote to comment on my September 7 FER Dealer Report opinion piece, “Where do we find the next generation?” Everyone noted the importance of bringing young people into this business that can be so rewarding and useful and which seemingly very few ever consider as a career. And everyone who…

Fiskars has sold Spring USA, the suburban Chicago maker of buffet systems, cooking stations and heat lamps, to a Minneapolis private equity company. The new owner, ShoreView Industries, previously held a financial interest in G.E.T. Enterprises. Spring USA had been owned by Fiskars since July 2015, when the Finnish company acquired the WWRD group of…

A few months after acquiring Kahala Brands, MTY Food Group is continuing to expand into the U.S. market. Last week, the Canadian firm unveiled an agreement to buy BF Acquisition Holdings, the owner of Baja Fresh Mexican Grill and La Salsa Fresh Mexican Grill.  The Montreal-based operator will pay $27 million in cash for the…