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MORE ASSOCIATIONS ARE joining the American Hotel & Lodging Association in protesting the National Labor Relations Board's recently issued final ruling on the definition of joint-employer status. The ruling essentially broadens the definition to any "entity that has an employment relationship with the employees," and AAHOA, AHLA and the other associations say it could damage the current franchise business model. NLRB's new standard, issued last week, defines a joint employer to be any company that shares or codetermines one or more essential terms and conditions of employment. Those include: Wages, benefits, and other compensation. Hours of work and scheduling. The assignment of duties to be performed. The supervision of the performance of duties. Work rules and directions governing the manner, means, and methods of the performance of duties and the grounds for discipline. The tenure of employment, including hiring and discharge. Working conditions related to the safety and health of employees.

PROPOSED FEDERAL REGULATIONS defining a "joint-employer standard" would have a "chilling effect" on the hospitality industry and franchises in general, according to the American Hotel & Lodging Association. The National Labor Relations Board's latest version of the standard could define two companies as joint employers if they both control certain elements of employees' terms and conditions. The period for comments on the proposed regulations ended Nov. 21 and the would rescind and replace the joint-employer rule that took effect on April 27, 2020. That previous rule established that "a business must possess and exercise substantial direct and immediate control over one or more essential terms and conditions of employment of another employer's employees" to be considered a joint employer. However, a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in July reversed that rule. Now, under the new rule, "two or more employers would be considered joint employers if they 'share or codetermine those matters governing employees' essential terms and conditions of employment,' such as wages, benefits and other compensation, work and scheduling, hiring and discharge, discipline, workplace health and safety, supervision, assignment, and work rules," according to NLRB.