California Restaurant Association

As restaurant operators grapple with how to comply with menu-labeling law SB 1420, the compliance deadline is closing in. Lucy Needham, president and CEO of FoodCalc, discusses her company’s web-based application, MenuCalc. The online system, combined with a staff of consultants, provides an efficient, economical solution to fulfilling the new law’s requirements. Click here to get In The Know.

The debate has occurred for many years but in September 2008 the Governor signed SB 1420 into law mandating menu labeling for restaurants operating 20 or more establishments in the state. Hear from the CRA’s President + CEO, Jot Condie about when the bill takes effect, how Capitol Hill is responding, and whether or not he predicts other state’s will follow suit. Click here to get In The Know.

Are you building leaders? Does your restaurant have the right people—and, more importantly, philosophy—trickling down from the top? Joleen Flory, President and CEO of the Elliot Leadership Institute, explains why identifying and training great leaders is crucial to the success of your business. Click here to get In the Know.

Michael Murray, chief marketing officer for restaurant marketing specialists Fishbowl, offers up easy-to-implement strategies to boost restaurant sales even in tough economic times. In this podcast, he shows restaurateurs Web-based marketing tools designed to grow and solidify their customer base. Click here to get In the Know.

Navigating the murky waters of tip pooling has historically proven difficult for many restaurants and recent court rulings surrounding this issue have only made it more tricky. John Boggs, a partner with California-based labor and employment law firm Fine, Boggs & Perkins, discusses the ins and outs of tip pooling at both the state and federal levels. Topics include the types of tip pooling that take place in most restaurants, what employees are entitled to when it comes to tips and the difference between a tip and a service charge. Click here to get In the Know.

CRA President + CEO Jot Condie discusses the ongoing health care issue in California, taking a realistic look at how it will affect the restaurant industry. Condie shares relevant health care challenges, the Governor's failed reform plan and his opinion on what is in store for California over the next couple of years. Click here to get In the Know.

All restaurateurs should be aware of the state + federal hiring and equipment credits that are available to them. Overlooked by a staggering 90 percent of businesses, a wide variety of state and federal employer hiring and equipment credits go unused every year. Tax credits such as these can effectively offset minimum wage and workers' compensation increases, health care costs and a host of other financial burdens. Taking advantage of these credits effectively allows business owners to increase net profits, cash flow and earnings per share. This In the Know podcast will teach listeners how to reap these rewards by providing an overview of available programs and discussing the tools and procedures for documenting valuable tax breaks. Click here to get In the Know.

California labor and employment laws are constantly in flux: Legislature grants new employee rights, regulatory agencies issue new regulations and interpretations of existing statutes, and the court system passes new decisions and opinions. All of these rules and regulations affect how California employers run their businesses and it’s crucial to stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape. Here is a review of 2007’s key employment law changes and a look forward at what business owners can expect in 2008 including: more flexibility on meal break implementation for unionized employers, California's covenant “not to compete law” and renewed attempts to pass mandatory health care legislation in California. Click here to get In the Know.