GRA Weekly

May 23, 2024

This week's newsletter is brought to you by GRA Corporate Partner, The Coca-Cola Company.

COASTAL GEORGIA KITCHEN CABINET

Coastal Georgia Kitchen Cabinet

Join us for a happy hour as we kick off the Georgia Restaurant Association’s Coastal Georgia Kitchen Cabinet! Through the creation of this alliance, we will bring together local restaurateurs to form a grassroots network to advocate for the issues important to you. At this kickoff event you will meet the new President + CEO of the GRA Stephanie Fischer and our government affairs team, and learn more about how the GRA can assist Savannah’s restaurants with the issues that you face.

Tuesday, June 4 | 3:30PM - 5:30PM

RSVP today!

GRA IN THE NEWS

Georgia Jobs for April: Good Growth, but Hospitality Still Catching Up

AJC - Unemployment rate still at all-time low for the Peach State, but there remains a need for workers in hotels, food services and other sectors as summer travel looms. The Georgia economy last month saw a surge of hiring in a range of sectors adding 15,500 jobs, nearly three times the average for April, the state Department of Labor said Thursday.

That growth kept the unemployment rate at a record low of 3.1% for the fourth consecutive month — despite more jobseekers... continue reading.

BUCKHEAD RESTAURANT WEEK

Buckhead Restaurant Week is Back!

In consultation with Melissa Libby & Associates, Buckhead Village District – Jamestown and Lenox Square – Simon, Livable Buckhead is excited to announce the return of Buckhead Restaurant Week for 2024, helping to promote Buckhead as a dining hotspot and increase patronage at local restaurants during traditionally less busy times.

How will it work?

Participation is FREE.
Restaurants will provide tiered flat pricing menu.
Participating restaurants can determine if they want to be part of lunch, dinner, or both.
Participating restaurants are free to determine what they would like to include in the tiered BRW offering, whether special items or regular menu items.
The restaurant is also free to determine any other items besides food, such as wine or cocktail choice to include in the tiered offerings.

RAISING PRICES VS. LOWERING FOOD COSTS

How to Find a Balance Between Raising Prices and Lowering Food Costs

Of surprise to no one, a major theme emanating from the National Restaurant Association Show floor is pricing. Operators are looking for solutions to protect their margins as input costs continue to elevate, but consumers seem to be reaching their pricing threshold as evidenced by recent traffic erosion. So, what’s the solution?

According to Ray Villaman, CEO/owner of the Tahoe Restaurant Group, there are ways to strike the right balance and it comes down to three key strategies - keep reading here.

COCA‑COLA® LENS

Bringing Insights Into Focus

Earlier this week, The Coca-Cola Company announced the launch of Coca-Cola Lens, an insights platform designed to empower our customers to make data-driven decisions for growth.

As the industry continues to navigate ongoing challenges, Coca-Cola Lens makes actionable insights more accessible, magnifying relevant trends to anticipate consumer preferences.

Coca-Cola has always been dedicated to driving growth with our partners. Now, you will be able to self-serve the actionable insights you need, precisely when you need them, empowering you to navigate the evolving landscape with confidence and agility.

Coca-Cola Lens utilizes proprietary tools and data, plus trends from secondary and third-party sources, to bring insights into focus via a digestible, user-friendly website. Accessible to all, the platform dives deep into the nuances of consumer behavior, and then zooms out to show the trends and context that make up the bigger picture, all with a forward-thinking outlook.

Please visit https://www.coca-colalens.com/ for more information.

MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH

Let's 86 The Stigma Around Mental Health

Access free resources this Mental Health Awareness Month! Giving Kitchen is here to educate, advocate, inspire, and uplift when it comes to the mental and emotional well-being of food service workers. Explore and review the Stability Network resources to help you and your team's journey to optimal mental health.

GRA ANNUAL GOLF TOURNAMENT RECAP

GRA Annual Golf Tournament Recap

On Tuesday, golfers, sponsors, and volunteers came together at Atlanta National Golf Club in Milton, GA for an incredible day of golf in support of the GRA. Participating golfers enjoyed exciting raffle prizes, a delicious variety of food served by restaurants on the course, beverages provided by industry partners, and interactive contests along the course. See photos from the event here.

A huge THANK YOU to our long-standing sponsors and restaurant partners for helping make this event happen: The Coca-Cola Company, Gas South, Society Insurance, Sysco, US Foods, Ecolab, Bennett Thrasher, Brewed to Serve Restaurant Group & Bold Monk Brewing Co., GoTo Foods, HM Plumbing, Moore Colson CPA & Advisors, NCR Voyix, Ted's Montana Grill, IRONWOOD, Taqueria Tsunami, NetTax, Chick-fil-A, Copeland's of New Orleans, Corporate Sports Unlimited, Loyal Q and Brew, Melissa Libby & Associates (MLA), Savannah Distributing, and Tito's Vodka!

And a warm welcome and THANK YOU to our newest sponsors this year, we look forward to this being the first of many events with us – The Georgia Hemp Company, Rinnai, DoorDash, The Design Manufacturing Group, United Exterior Solutions & United Bin Cleaning!

Congratulations to the Top Scoring Teams:

First Place: Sizzling Steak Concepts (Wilson Oswald, Pierce Brooks, Blake Kennedy, Jim Thompson)
Second Place: IRONWOOD//GRA (Matt Hene, Nick Leet, Scott Bierman, Joe Kniple)
Third Place: Bennett Thrasher (Chase Quinn, Shawn Roberts, Chris Frederick, Davis Reynolds)

Stay tuned for another chance to golf with us in support of the GRA Foundation this fall!

DEADLINE EXTENDED - FILE YOUR CLAIM TODAY!

Restaurant Operators May be Eligible Settlement Funds

The Payment Card Settlement is the biggest antitrust class-action settlement in history and sets aside about $6B for U.S. merchants who paid artificially inflated Visa and Mastercard interchange fees. The deadline to submit a claim as part of the Payment Card Settlement has been extended to August 30, 2024.

Key takeaway: If your restaurant accepted Visa and/or Mastercard at any time between Jan. 1, 2004, to Jan. 25, 2019, you may be entitled to a share of this $6B class-action settlement. Visit www.paymentcardsettlement.com to submit a claim before the updated deadline, Aug. 30, 2024.

Submitting a claim is easy: The claim process was designed to take only 5 to 15 minutes. The portal should even autofill most information when submitting the individual’s “Claimant ID” and “Control Number” found in the claim letter or by submitting the business’s Tax ID, if the claim letter is not available.

Learn more: Click here to watch a recording of a webinar the Association and the Restaurant Law Center hosted on the settlement. Register for the webinar to access the recording.

FEDERAL UPDATE

Webinar Alert: Navigating Child Labor Laws This Summer

Join the National Restaurant Association and the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) for a timely webinar: "Child Labor Law Compliance in the Foodservice Industry: Keeping Teens Safe This Summer."

Date: Tuesday, June 18th, 2024
Time: 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM EDT

Why Attend? This webinar will empower you and your team with the knowledge to successfully navigate federal child labor laws, ensuring a safe and productive summer season. Here's what we'll cover:

An Overview of Federal Child Labor Laws: Ensure you're up to date with the basics.
Permissible Work Hours: Learn the legal working hours for 14- and 15-year-olds.
Prohibited Jobs: Understand the jobs deemed hazardous for 14- and 15-year-olds and those prohibited for all workers under 18.
Common Violations: Avoid the most frequent pitfalls.
Q&A Session: Get your questions answered by WHD specialists.

Secure Your Spot - Register Here

Can't Attend Live? Register to access the on-demand recording.

USTR Maintains Tariffs on China, Announces Increases in Certain Products

Last week, USTR announced that it WILL NOT reduce its current tariffs on China and will instead increase tariffs on various products, including electric vehicles, EV batteries, facemasks, semiconductors, and medical gloves. Additionally, tariffs on steel and aluminum products will increase to 25% in 2024.

Restaurant Impact: The Association has supported the elimination of these tariffs for years and is disappointed to hear that USTR will keep the tariffs in place. Many food products (vegetables, fruits, nuts, dairy, meat, grains, etc.), kitchen and food manufacturing and preparation equipment, and plastics (gloves, utensils, etc.) will continue to be affected by these tariffs. It also appears that USTR will not provide an extension of the current exclusions that apply to the ten seafood lines set to expire on May 31, 2024. Therefore, expect a 25 percent tariff on items currently subject to an exclusion, to restart June 1.

The big picture: USTR’s decision to maintain and increase tariffs is part of their ongoing strategy to address China’s unfair technology transfer policies.

What’s Next: Our coalition, Americans for Free Trade, released this statement, which opposes the Administration’s actions. Throughout this process, we have shared with the Administration why these tariffs are harmful for American businesses and consumers. A Federal Register notice will be issued next week outlining the procedures to comment on the proposed tariff increases.

DOL Announces 65% Increase to Overtime Threshold

The Department of Labor (DOL) has released its final overtime rule, significantly increasing the minimum annual salary threshold determining overtime pay eligibility under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) from $35,568 to $58,656. The rule will gradually come into effect, with an increase to $43,888 on July 1, 2024, and an increase to $58,656 effective January 1, 2025.

The Details: DOL sets a salary threshold to ensure eligible employees receive overtime pay for all hours worked over 40 in a work week.

Using 2023 data, the new salary threshold equals $1,128 per week or $58,656 annually for a full-year worker.
The rule also increases the salary threshold for the highly compensated employee (HCE) exemption from $107,432 to $151,164 annually.
The HCE exemption will also gradually come into effect, with an increase to $132,964 on July 1, 2024, and an increase to $151,164 effective January 1, 2025.

What’s New: The final rule includes an automatic update to the overtime threshold every three years based on available wage data at that time.

The DOL expects to announce the first such update on July 1, 2027, which will affect both the standard salary and HCE thresholds.
This methodology was specifically opposed by the National Restaurant Association and Restaurant Law Center in comments submitted last year.

Who’s Affected: Unless specifically exempted, an employee covered by the FLSA must receive pay for hours worked over 40 in a workweek at a rate not less than one and one-half their regular pay rate.

Beginning on July 1, 2024, any employee earning under $43,888 will be owed overtime pay.
On January 1, 2025, any employee earning under $58,656 will be owed overtime pay.
This means that employees who were previously exempt from overtime pay may now be eligible, and employers may need to adjust their pay structures and work schedules accordingly.

Please see the DOL fact sheet linked here for information on determining if an employee is exempt.

MAIL THEFT ALERT

Mail Theft Alert

The GRA has received official notice from the U.S. Postal Service about recent mail theft in our area. As a precaution, we strongly urge our members pay their dues invoices electronically and to please contact us directly to confirm if a recently mailed check payment has in fact been received by our office. For more information on how to protect yourself against mail theft, please visit the USPS’s website.

GRA FOUNDATION UPDATE

ProStart Professional Development

Register today for ProStart Professional Development! Thanks to the 150 educators who joined us for ProStart PD’s inaugural session in 2023 and provided valuable feedback, we’re returning in 2024 with an experience that better reflects the needs of educators. Join us in 2024 to find:

An expanded program covering Sunday-Friday, with room for up to 200 educators
Full-day lab experiences
A greater focus on aligning the training to the circumstances and experience of ProStart educators
An updated exam

Join us this July in New Orleans, LA to equip yourself with tools to enhance your students' experience, encouraging them to pursue restaurant and hospitality careers. Register Today!

GEORGIA IMPACT REPORT

Georgia Impact Report

Restaurants are engines of economic growth across the country, injecting billions into local and state economies. Whether it’s creating jobs, developing careers, or supporting local programs and businesses, the foodservice industry generates a significant impact in communities large and small. Click on our state impact reports to get a better idea of the size and scope of the restaurant industry where you operate, including no. of restaurants, jobs generated and sales as of the end of 2023.

DIVERSITY AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE RESTAURANT INDUSTRY

Diversity and Demographics in the Restaurant Industry

The National Restaurant Association's recent Data Brief showcases the diverse demographics of America's second-largest private sector employer—the restaurant and foodservice industry. Here are some key findings from the report:

Ethnic Diversity: Half of all restaurant employees are minorities, significantly higher than the 41% in the total US workforce.
Gender Representation: Women constitute 54% of the industry's workforce, with a majority in managerial and tipped positions.
Youthful Workforce: 40% of restaurant workers are under the age of 25, emphasizing the sector's appeal to younger individuals.
Educational Diversity: A notable percentage of employees are pursuing education while working, with 27% enrolled in school.

For more details on the workforce's composition across age, gender, ethnicity, and more, click here.

RESERVE YOUR SEAT AT THE TABLE

Reserve Your Seat at the Table

Come to the Table with an appetite for engaging topics and comprehensive insights from industry experts, thought leaders, and movers and shakers from across the food service industry.

The Table—a unique new event—will bring together members from our Finance, Tax & Audit, Food Safety & Quality Assurance, Human Resources and Risk & Safety, IT, Nutrition, and Sustainability Expert Exchange communities under one roof for three days packed with engaging topics and comprehensive insights.

SAVE ON ELECTRIC RATES

Save on Electric Rates

The Georgia Restaurant Association fought hard for restaurants to have access to a rate that was previously only available to large, multi-unit chains. If you are a restaurant that uses Georgia Power, identifies as 722 in NAICS, and meet the actual peak demand requirement of not less than 30 kW, then you should reach out and ask about switching to the TOU-FD. We have heard testimonies from independent restaurants from across the state reporting an average savings of 10%-15% on their power bill.

You may contact Georgia Power’s Business Solutions Center directly at 1-888-655-5888. If you have any questions, you can contact us and we are happy to assist to the best of our ability or connect you with a trusted partner.