Congress may vote during this session on the American Franchise Act (AFA), legislation that would undo longstanding “joint-employer” protections that hold accountable corporations that cheat workers out of earned wages, violate child labor laws, or undermine workers’ union rights. Without these protections, a franchisor would be free to structure contracts with small franchisees in ways that provide it the authority to control work conditions at franchise locations but escape liability for labor and employment law violations. Although the bill has not advanced out of committee, a handful of Democratic lawmakers and numerous Republicans are sponsoring H.R. 5267, raising concerns that the bill may pass the House of Representatives and possibly even become law.
If enacted, the AFA would roll back protections for the nearly 9 million Americans working at franchises, thereby leaving the owners of more than 800,000 individual franchise establishments solely accountable for any workplace misdeeds.
Contrary to supporters’ claims, the AFA’s changes go well beyond a company’s need to control brand quality; they also take control away from franchise owners in order to create a legal loophole for large corporations. The legislation would permit a corporation to act like an employer—for example, allowing franchisors to dictate minimum staffing levels, recruiting, and hiring standards; express negative opinions of franchise employees; and even refuse to allow a franchisee’s employee to...
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