POLITICAL:

The U.S. Department of Labor is seeking to revise and re-propose tipping rules for employees who work “dual jobs,” who do both tipped and untipped work. The proposal returns to the 80/20 approach of previous years, but with more detailed guidelines for enforcement.

SOCIAL:

The struggles of the restaurant industry to reopen amid staffing shortages, shifting COVID-19 protocols and the pressures from lost revenue are translating to a poor customer experience. Customer frustration is evident across the U.S.

ENVIRONMENTAL:

FutureMeat has opened the world’s first production facility for producing cultured meat. The Israel-based plant is seeking regulatory approval to sell meat abroad and aims to enter the U.S. market by 2022.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT:

What you can’t do: fix your employees’ existential crisis. What you can do: help alleviate it. Harvard Business Review has some tips on how to do so.

ECONOMIC:

The restaurant industrymay be caught between a rock and a hard place. As restaurants tempt workers with higher wages, menu prices are also rising to compensate. For some workers, though, higher wages are not enough, and customers may not be willing to pay higher prices for items they are familiar with.

TECHNOLOGY:

Due to the pandemic, the restaurant industry has integrated new technology at accelerated rates. The 2021 Restaurant Tech Ecosystem maps out who is using tech and at what point in the business flow.

LEGAL:

A West Coast union group is using hot summer weather to revitalize a push for the Fast Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act, which would set up a council to create and review quick-service workplace standards in California. Specifically, the union is pointing to restaurants that remained open despite broken air conditioners in extreme heat.