Firing of Nonunion Workers Held Unfair Labor Practice
The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently held an employer that fired two nonunion workers for complaining to a client about their employer's policies violated the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).
Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 Enacted
The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT), which amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), was recently enacted. The FCRA created a national credit reporting system, and was set to expire this month. FACT permanently authorizes the majority of the FCRA's provisions while including two noteworthy revisions. Particularly significant for employers are FACT Sections 611 and 411, which include new standards for third-party investigations of employee wrongdoing and reporting of employee medical information to employers.
Topical Research: Your Input Sought
For possible future articles, I'd like to gather reader input on a number of topics; here are two. Please be in touch if you or an interested colleague would be a good research contact for either topic. (If you have authoritative knowledge and would like to write on the topic, better yet!)
Bush Signs Anti-Spam Bill
On Dec. 16, President George W. Bush signed the "can spam" legislation passed earlier in the month by Congress. The legislation provides for jail time and hefty fines for serious violators and calls for the creation of a "do not spam" registry.
News Briefs
Highlights of the latest franchising news from around the country.
Selected Pitfalls to Avoid in the Sale of Refranchised Units
The sale of company units to franchisees ("refranchising") differs from a traditional asset sale because the transaction contemplates a continuous business relationship between the parties. The basic terms of this relationship should be outlined in a letter of intent and will be contained in the provisions of the various transaction documents, including the Asset Sale Agreement (ASA), related transfer documents, such as deeds, leases, subleases, assignments, bills of sale, etc., one or more franchise agreements and, if the obligation to develop additional units is part of the transaction, a development agreement. This article continues the discussion of refranchising in last month's issue by reviewing some of the issues that the parties should consider carefully as they document their on-going relationship post closing.
Proposed New Accounting Rules Rile Franchisors, Franchisees
<i>In the wake of accounting scandals involving Enron, WorldCom, and other companies, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) is upgrading many rules to force public companies to provide more information about their finances. One of the areas it is addressing relates to how the primary company's financial obligations toward "variable interest entities" are shown on its balance sheet. These rules are aimed primarily at companies that have controlling interests in other companies and, as was the case with Enron, potentially could use those companies to hide their own financial obligations.</i>
Court Watch
Highlights of the latest franchising cases from around the country.
