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Christopher Decker, University of Nebraska Omaha

The first U.S. jobs report of 2022 showed continued - if lackluster - growth. But perhaps of greater significance for the economic year ahead are two factors that lurked behind the headline unemployment rate: a stagnating labor pool and the impact of omicron.

First, the good news. The economy did add jobs in December, 199,000 of them, with gains in most sectors. This was less than the 440,000-job increase that some economists expected. Still, the gains are an indication of a reasonably healthy economy.

And October and November jobs numbers were revised upward by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Meanwhile, gains were seen across a number of key sectors. The leisure and hospitality sector was up, as expected given recent trends, as were business services and manufacturing.

Construction was also up and should continue to gain in the months to come - if it can find the workers.

The stagnating labor market

The unemployment rate was down to 3.9% - a new low in the pandemic era. This is good, to a degree. People who want jobs are finding them.

The problem is employers are having a hard time finding the workers amid a somewhat stagnating labor market.

The number of people in the labor force increased a little in December, but not by much - only about 168,000. And with job openings outpacing this small increase in the labor market, there remains a significant risk that worker wages may begin to rise too quickly for the economy.

While this is great for workers, it poses a concern for those trying to tamp down the rising prices of goods. Higher wages in the hands of workers means more money to spend, which generally drives prices of goods upward.

The latest report shows that wages are up, hours worked remain constant and the participation rate was unchanged. Even the number of people not in the labor force but wanting a job changed little. It is very much a sellers market in labor right now. Strikes, wage pressure and more flexible work environments may become the new normal.

Separate data from November, released on Jan. 4, 2021, by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, provides further evidence of a drying up labor market. There were 6.9 million hires that month but 10.6 million job openings - a clear imbalance. Meanwhile the share of workers voluntarily quitting their jobs continued to be high.

It appears that many Americans who lost their jobs in 2020 have either taken early retirement or are still delaying re-entering the workforce.

And those hesitating to rush back to the office or factory floor are unlikely to be encouraged by the problem not yet reflected in jobs data: omicron.

The slowdown to come

The latest jobs report does not really reflect the effect of omicron on the labor market. The monthly jobs data is typically collected mid-month - before the highly contagious COVID-19 variant really took hold in the U.S.

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But if the U.S. doesn't see omicron cases peaking soon, Americans will likely see some real slowdown in hiring. With more workers falling ill and unable to work, managers at retail stores, as well as bars and restaurants, may well be forced to reduce hours of operation, reducing revenue and slowing growth in the process.

We are already seeing this with airlines, which have been forced to cancel flights. The real sectors at risk here are the leisure and hospitality sectors and retail - two industries that have bounced back quite well of late.

This may all sound a little downbeat given that the December jobs report did show gains. Growth is growth - it is just that the risks to the economy are quite high right now.

Christopher Decker, Professor of Economics, University of Nebraska Omaha

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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Nice piece by Danny Klein pointing to the complexities that the new minimum wages have caused for some restaurants, discussing the recent bankruptcy of Restaurants Unlimited.

"Over the past several years, certain changes to wage laws in the debtors' primary geographic locations coupled with two expansion decisions that utilized cash flow from operations resulted in increased use of cash flow from operations and borrowings and restricted liquidity," filings said.

"These challenges coupled with additional state-mandates that will result in an additional extraordinary wage hike in [fiscal year] 2020 in certain locations before all further wage increases are subject to increases in the CPI and the general national trend away from casual dining, led to the need to commence these chapter 11 cases."

This is a more general complaint and we will likely see even more technology replace these lost jobs.

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The entry level wage for restaurant workers in the US has always trailed the minimum wage for other industries.

That is about to change -- with the drive for a $15 minimum wage.

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"Imagine that eight people walk into a meeting to discuss an important strategic decision for their company.

They're all well-versed in the challenge they face.

But two members of the group hold some key piece of information or a perspective that not everybody has considered.

Everyone knows, for example, about the major trends in the industry that the boss has been talking about for months. They've seen the slide that shows last quarter's disappointing sales results a hundred times.

Only one person, however, knows about the recent moves of a competitor, while another has insights into an important emerging technology.

The whole point of getting everyone into a room, it would seem, would be to make sure that new information comes to the surface so the best decision can be made. In a workplace that values harmony and respect (and nearly all now do), that new information, sadly, will almost certainly get buried.

That's thanks to a pernicious and powerful quirk in group psychology called shared information bias."

"Shared information bias is known as the tendency for group members to spend more time and energy discussing information that all members are already familiar with (i.e., shared information), and less time and energy discussing information that only some members are aware of (i.e., unshared information).

Harmful consequences related to poor decision-making can arise when the group does not have access to unshared information (hidden profiles) in order to make a well-informed decisions." From Wikipedia.

Jonah Sachs thinks that this is a matter of being too nice when making a decision in groups.

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I'm not a franchisee, I'm a business mentor, that specializes in growing my clients companies by understanding the rational, emotional and subconscious needs of their ideal customers then creating the perfect products and services for these ideal customers....

So, when I decided to help franchise a gardening business, and knowing that the franchisee would be the customer, off I went to 'do what I do' and get to grips with understanding the rational, emotional and subconscious experience of people who have bought franchises.

I have been horrified! I kid you not.

In the past month, I have spoken to 30 or more franchise partners of well known national companies, big and small, as well as partners of lesser known franchises and those recently arrived in the UK.

Whilst I'm aware there are many wonderful franchisors, I have discovered that often, a franchisee is not thought of as a client or customer of the franchisor, but rather as an employee of a dictatorial regime.

I am continuing to speak to people about their franchise experiences, which is helping me build a unique franchise model that treats the franchisee as a highly valued and respected client and not a skivvy.

Which companies do you think have the most ethical and empowering franchise models?

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Gary Kennett The unfortunate part of being a Franchisee, as I have experienced and observed is, that the Franchisor makes decisions, about Advertising, Sales Promotions, New Product ideas, and certainly, Operational Procedures, that directly affect your bottom line. They may have no clue about your immediate Market potential, but whatever they say, goes, as they move forward with their plans for sales promotions (i.e. DISCOUNTS), and product launches, that may have very little impact on your business, other than, discounting your Profit Margin. At the end of the day, if they're making 7.5% or more of your Gross Sales then, that's what they seem to care about. If they were tied into your Profit Margin then, they may pay closer attention as to who and how they effect their Franchisees. One might say "Well, wouldn't they be concerned if you potentially, went out of business, due to their blind shotgun strategies?" My answer is "No", they would simply approach you with a rock bottom "buy out" price, because your business was no longer worth what it could be, and move on. It's a sad day in Franchising, if you ask me.

Jim RuckerHaving worked as both a Franchisee and for a Franchisor, an important issue I see is Franchisees entering into a franchise system with the unrealistic expectation of owning their own business and operating it as they see fit. Yes, they own a business but really what was purchased was the Franchisor's system and if the system is not followed, it can ruin a brand. While many new Franchisees appreciate the system when they start, they can become resentful later because they are not given the leeway to operate things their way. Branding is perhaps the most compelling reason to buy into a franchise system and in order to maintain a high level of consistency and meet customer expectations, there must be compliance with the system. Most franchisees are not born business experts and struggle with some of the most important aspects of successful business operations. Again, they appreciate the system while they are learning it but once it is mostly mastered, dissatisfaction can creep in with the control the Franchisor maintains. One other thing I see concerning Franchisee dissatisfaction is everyone would operate differently if they were the Franchisor and regardless of the decisions made, you aren't going to please everyone. Decisions made by the Franchisor must be made in the best interest of the Franchisor and the system as a whole.

Madam Becky AdamsI have found this dissatisfaction when interviewing franchisees, and it seems to start after a year or so when they feel they are no longer getting value for money in the form of training and support.

If you're trying to do right by the franchise partner it must be soul destroying for a franchisor to be complained about all the time!
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Gary KennettFor me, I was very well aware of the relationship, between Franchisor and Franchisee, but the difference is that I thought the Franchisee had more collective influence, as a Group, and the overall situation and status of different events, has proven that we don't. So, I certainly, was not under the belief that I would come into the picture and change my product menu, to offer things the Franchisor doesn't, but I would summarily say that "most of us are not pleased with their dictatorial approach to various issues.Show less

Tim EvansLike Paul said, a lot of franchisees come into the business after being "outsourced" or "downsized" with no previous business experience. They are generally unemployable (not really) to most companies based on age, etc. The franchise system offers them an opportunity to come in a business system, which offers them the core structure of running a business. Unfortunately, all they have is a JOB (just over broke). The key is to make as much as you can above the line (yes the franchise gets their share), but manage your below the line expenses to maximize "your money". Show less

Robert RicheRobert Riche. I was a franchisee for over 20 years running multiple units, and almost five years in a senior corporate position. Purchasing a franchise is a very dangerous proposition. All the power and control rest with the franchisor, you end up with a lot of turn over of management staff, field management etc., most systems have a high turnover every 3 to 5 years, everyone thinks they have a better idea. Tim your comment about franchisee's is true, but that's what the industry attracts. You can list the quality operations on one hand. Everything else is suspect. Show less

Gary KennettMy situation was different than most, in that, the original franchising co. was bought out, but by folks not well experienced in the business. Then, they began implementing their view of the business, and it's future complexion and business model, along with the new "culture" and "atmosphere" they wanted to convey. Due to the very nature of the original business, and how it was now, differing with the newer ideas being brought in, it simply clashed and I think alot of conflict resulted.Show less

Madam Becky Adams

Thank you so much guys for your thoughts. I have been considering trying to combine a franchise structure with a business mentoring model...

So, for example, with the gardening and grounds business, instead of someone buying a franchise, they buy a 'business in a box'.

Their brand, their business to do what they want with.

They buy a step by step proven model, training and support, but the business is theirs from the outset. If after a year of help from a team of on-site and on-line experts they feel they have enough experience, they can cut loose and go it alone, or just buy the support services they think they need.

To me, from having spoken to so many miserable franchisees, it gives the best of both worlds. Autonomy within a proven structure and as much support as you do or don't feel you need.

Cláudio PazinI am franchisee here in Brazil and the brand that I represent is recognized and has several awards, but the results and expectations presented by the franchisor during the sale process weren't reliable. For example... units with a bad results are often offered to Franchisor Managers or older franchisees at very low prices. It's a way to avoid to show the "shut down" number. There was two years ago I searched for another brand in a different segment, but analyzing the franchisor's data I realized that the data provided weren't also reliable, so I faced the franchisor with my analysis and I heard the answer that if the franchisor tells the truth would be impossible to sell franchises. Of course that time I gave up...Show less

Carlos RocheHello Claudio, Sorry to hear about your situation. I understand that the franchisor may have lied about the real numbers, however, if the franchise is solid, give it all you've got and sell.

Do you still have the franchise?
What kind of product or service do you provide?

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I'm in the throes of flea warfare. These parasites have invaded my cats and my home. Temporarily living elsewhere, I had relied on my twenty-one year old son for cat care. Naturally, he hadn't noticed the problem until it became glaringly apparent and, unfortunately, full blown. The lessons from this ordeal are numerous. Some are flea specific but there is one, applicable to employers, that stands out for me (no, it's not that employees are annoying pests!) It is:

It serves employers well to provide new employees with the right tools and information they need and where to go for help. Since my son and I are new at dealing with fleas, there wasn't even a flea comb in the house initially. So I had to obtain an arsenal of targeted weapons, do research and quickly ramp up my knowledge of steps to take. I'm much more knowledgeable now and, hopefully, am being effective in my efforts.

Similarly, be sure your employees, especially when newly hired, have the right tools, equipment, materials and information to do their job or that they know where and how to obtain them. That may seem obvious but, all too often, new employees are hired without thought given to what they'll need, how to help them become competent and productive sooner. All too often, supervisors and co-workers are too busy to help and new employees are left to figure things out on their own.

Here's an example: Taylor is hired for his first job as a part-time merchandiser. He orders, shelves and displays coffee and tea to three grocery stores. He faxes a weekly order every Thursday afternoon but does not have a fax machine. His supervisor makes it clear that the job must be done in 15 hours per week and that he should use one of the grocery stores' fax machines for free. Taylor finds that often the fax machine is broken or in use or the door is locked. This simple task of faxing has become stressful and Taylor wonders if he should find another job. The employer, meanwhile, could have prevented Taylor's stress by: providing a fax machine, devising another mode of transmitting the information, or allowing him to be reimbursed for the extra time and expense of using a store that charges for faxing. Any of these would be less expensive than replacing Taylor.

Supervisors should always spend a little time upfront putting themselves in the shoes of the new employee and thinking about what he or she will need to do the job. The right materials make a huge difference and allow the employee to:

• Do the job more efficiently
• Perform better sooner
• Feel more competent sooner
• Feel part of the organization
• Avoid the sense that the employer doesn't care
• Avoid spinning their wheels
• Avoid stress and boredom

The last bullet is worth expanding upon. As with Taylor in the example above, when employees feel bored or stressed they go into survival mode. Survival mode calls up the fight or flight response that engages the reptilian (or lower, instinctual) part of the brain. Higher cognition, needed for learning and creativity, is not accessible. The quality of the employee's work suffers and so does his perception of his experience at your organization. The employee feels disengaged from the job and from the employer. There are many factors that lead to employee disengagement but not having the right tools is a major contributor. Disengagement leads to mediocre work, less satisfied customers and, as with Taylor in the example, turnover.

Through this flea ordeal I've been both bored by the tedium of eradication activities and stressed by the tenacity of fleas but, unlike Taylor, don't have the option to quit. But I do have tools to get the job done and, if those fail, I know the exterminator to call for help.

You, as an employer, similarly need the right tools and tips to be as effective as possible. For all of your human resources and employment-related needs, for best practices, for online training and HR-related resources, HRSentry is at your fingertips 24/7.

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In the height of summer in 2012 it was the warmest year on record. Fueled by drought conditions, huge fires destroyed homes and burned thousands of acres in western states.

Temperatures above 100 degrees have persisted to an unprecedented extent across the county. Severe storms in the northeast caused multiple power outages that combined with high temperatures to cause uncomfortable and even unsafe conditions.

This summer, then, it seems more important than ever to pay attention to the dangers of heat. You need to ensure that your workers are safe.

The Occupational Health and Safety Adminstration (OSHA) has created a campaign to help employers and workers understand and prevent heat illness. Heat illness can occur under conditions of heat and humidity, particularly with work that requires exertion and/or heavy protective clothing and equipment.

The three main keys to prevention of heat-related illness are: water, rest, and shade. Train your outdoor workers to pay attention to all three. It's important that those working in heat conditions drink water, even if not thirsty and that they rest in the shade to cool down. Heavy work in hot conditions should be built up to so that the worker's body can acclimate properly and safely.

There are different degrees of heat-related illness from heat cramps to heat exhaustion to the extremely serious heat stroke. Train your workers and supervisors to recognize heat exhaustion symptoms such as nausea, headache, dizziness and drenching sweats with cold, clammy skin. Heat stroke is particularly dangerous, sometimes fatal, and can occur with no heat exhaustion symptoms occurring first. Immediate, emergency medical care should be obtained with any of these symptoms:

• Confusion, anxiety, or loss of consciousness
• Very rapid or dramatically slowed heartbeat
• Rapid rise in body temperature that reaches 104 to 106 degrees Fahrenheit
• Marked decrease in sweating accompanied by hot, flushed, dry skin
• Convulsion
• Other heat-related symptoms not relieved by shade or air-conditioning and fluids

OSHA also provides a Heat App for free download in English or Spanish for iPhone or Android. The app provides a heat index for a particular worksite and the related level of risk for outdoor workers.

Click on reminders--including drinking enough fluids, scheduling rest breaks, planning for and knowing what to do in an emergency, adjusting work operations, gradually building up the workload for new workers, training on heat illness signs and symptoms, and monitoring each other for signs and symptoms of heat-related illness--for that level of risk.

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Do you remember your first job? Was it fun or character building? Were you inspired or did it help you decide to get more education or otherwise change course so you wouldn't end up in that role for the rest of your life? Ideally, a teen learns proper work habits, a work ethic and financial responsibility through a first job. Many employers need extra help during the summer but, whether you're hiring young people for seasonal or year round positions, there are a few things to keep in mind to make sure things go smoothly.

Wages

Be sure to pay at least the minimum wage, federal or state, whichever is higher. The current federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) does allow for a special minimum wage of $4.25 for employees under the age of 20 during their first 90 consecutive calendar days of employment. After the 90-day period, you need to pay the full federal minimum wage. Please be mindful that you may not terminate the lower paid teen just as the 90 days runs out in order to hire another young person at the lower rate.

Hour Restrictions for under 16s

Under the FLSA, the minimum age for employment in non-agricultural employment is 14. There are limitations as to when and how long 14- and 15-year olds may work. Their work hours must: be non-school hours; no more than 3 hours in a school day, 18 hours in a school week, 8 hours in a non-school day, 40 hours in a non-school week; and occur between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. (except from June 1 through Labor Day, when evening hours are extended to 9 p.m.) The hours of employees aged 16 and older are not regulated.

Work Restrictions for under 18s
In non-agricultural work, the permissible jobs, by age, are as follows:
• Workers 18 years or older may perform any job, whether hazardous or not;
• Workers 16 and 17 years old may perform any non-hazardous jobs; and
• Workers 14 and 15 years old may work outside school hours in various non-manufacturing, non-mining, non-hazardous jobs.

New Employee Orientation
It's a great idea to provide an orientation and training to young employees. Don't treat temporary employees differently; they need to understand policies, rules and your culture as much as your other employees. Remember, this may be a first job for a teen so laying out the expectations can be particularly valuable. Clear expectations prevent problems and help any employee be more successful. Be explicit about basics such as timeliness, dress code, pay dates, the job description, expected behaviors, and who to go to with questions. If you can assign a work buddy to serve as a role model and go-to person, so much the better.

Sexual Harassment Awareness
Keep in mind that teens and younger employees may be particularly vulnerable to sexual harassment. They have less life experience, may have less confidence and assertiveness, and usually perform jobs that lack power. So be sure that young hires understand your anti-harassment policies and who to go to if they encounter any problems. Keep in mind that a harasser is not always someone who works for you; it could be an outside vendor or even one of your best customers! It's your responsibility to investigate immediately and, if there is harassment, to stop it right away. Encourage teens to report a problem right away so you can fix it. A caveat: make sure any fix does not harm the complainant in any way (e.g. worse shift, fewer hours, worse location) as that could be considered retaliation.

State Laws

Finally, be sure to check your state laws to be sure you are in compliance. All states have child labor standards. When federal and state standards differ, the rules that provide the most protection to young workers apply.

Hiring teens should be a win-win for both you and the teens you hire. With your legal obligations in mind and a little extra thought put towards orienting and educating your new employees, summertime should be enjoyable for all!

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Do you ever wonder how and why some folks are successful, natural born leaders and some aren't?

How some folks learn to deal with the ups and downs of life & find ways to make things better while others are so down and find the smallest thing to complain about? And keep complaining. They don't deal or play well with others.

Successful leaders seem to have a trait, or several traits as a matter of fact, traits which allows them to move forward in a more positive mode.

There are many traits successful leaders have. Here are seven we believe in and want to share.

1.Your Attitude is Your Choice - Successful leaders have great attitudes. No one else can make you have a great attitude but you. So you are totally in control of this factor. You can wake up, smile, and feel this is gonna be a great day. That's your choice.

Or, you can wake up and decide it's gonna be a crappy day. Again, your choice. Which would you rather have? And let's not forget, there is a difference between an attitude and a mood. Know what it is?

Attitudes are permanent; moods are temporary. Big difference. Those with a better attitude get out of bad moods quicker. Why? Because those of us with a great attitude do not want to wallow in the manure of a bad mood. (And yes, I cleaned that up.)

2. Visualize Success - Successful leaders visualize success. They see a positive outcome. If you watch American Idol (as I do), you know each and every one of those kids sees themselves as the winner. They visualize it.

Any political candidate running for office sees themselves winning. Whether they do or don't isn't part of visualization. It is, however, the key to how they got where they are. Seeing yourself winning is critical in having a great attitude. You know that old saying "whether you say you can, or you can't...you're right." (Henry Ford I'm told.)

3. Humor, Energy and Enthusiasm - A huge part of being a successful leader are these 3 magic ingredients. Successful leaders, laugh more, walk and work with energy, and they keep their enthusiasm up in all areas.

My dad told me years ago: "Enthusiasm is contagious; let's start an epidemic."

4. Resist Negative Tendencies - Successful leaders don't want to participate with those folks who want to bring you down. They keep away from them. They're downers. "It's too hot. It's too cold. I'm too fat. I'm too thin. I hate my hair." the list goes on.

No one wants to be with people who are constantly down and complaining. Keeping that positive mental attitude is very important. Successful leaders resist negative tendencies.

5. Be a Whatever It Takes Person - There's a wonderful poem I memorized years ago and while it's too long to print here, it's called "Somebody Said It Couldn't Be Done." Bottom line, it mean to be a double checker. Successful leaders take the time to double check.

Be a 'whatever it takes' person. It's a thrill to make it happen when someone else doesn't think it can.

6. Embrace Change - Difficult we know. However, those successful leaders realizing when and where there is change, it's normally for the better. And worse case, if it's not better, accepting and embracing change, will help the attitude.

My dad had a fun saying. He would say, "Nancy, the next time you change your mind, get a good one." The key to embracing change is to accept it. Successful leaders work with it. They make it work.

7. Be Grateful for What You Have - Successful leaders have no room for jealously. We can be envious of something or someone, that's a normal trait. Example, I'm envious of those who can sing. I'm not jealous; just envious. When you're jealous you can hold grudges.

(Successful leaders don't normally hold grudges.) Why wait for a life-altering experience to be thankful for what you do have. It might be too late.

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~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Nancy Friedman, president of Telephone Doctor Customer Service Training, St. Louis, MO, is a popular KEYNOTE speaker at franchise, association and corporate conferences.

For a DEMO of Nancy in action, call 314-291-1012 or log on to: www.nancyfriedman.com or email her at [email protected].

You decided to become a newly minted franchisor.

And when that day finally arrived how exciting was that?

You were going to conquer the world with your franchise brand.

Here's what you did right.

Started with a tested business model with a verifiable proof of concept.

Hired a competent and experienced franchise attorney to develop your franchise agreement and franchise disclosure document - FDD.

Your franchise attorney strongly suggested (or insisted) since you have a strong proof of concept for your franchise model that you include an Item 19 Financial Performance Representation - FPR and you did it.

Developed an operations manual, training system and support system that is scalable as you grow your franchise system.

You had a reasonable budget to market for franchise recruitment.

But, after a while, you will hate being a franchisor. Here are your 7 biggest beefs.

1. Early franchisees you selected seemed very passionate about being franchise owner/operators but they are not living up to what they promised and you're more than disappointed.
2. Multi-unit franchisees are not current with their development objectives and they expect you to not hold them to what everyone agreed to. They want some or all of the following extensions, refunds or credits against franchise fees and in return you get nothing. Not even what you originally bargained for.
3. You have a great training program and franchisees are shortcutting what your program offers and requires.
4. Franchisee local market success depends on local store marketing, your franchisees don't make the investment in it. And they complain to you that sales are too low and your brand is not well known enough in their area.
5. Franchise owners expect you to fix their unit level problems with employees, landlords, suppliers, insurance, local municipality, their business & operating partners. You had no idea that you'd be expected to do so much hand holding and babysitting when you set out selling & opening franchises.
6. Franchise recruitment for a new franchisor is tough. However you couldn't have imagined how difficult generating and managing leads would be. And the cost per new franchise recruited is far more than you anticipated.
7. You discovered that your management team had a much greater learning curve for transitioning your business to a franchise development and operations company. And now you're faced with some tough staffing decisions as you move forward.

This is not an exhaustive list of awful franchise things and readers can feel free to add to the list.

Good news is that you had a good underlying business at the outset. And all these franchising challenges can be remedied.

If this sounds llike your franchising story & you want some help solving your problems call me at 443.502.2636 [email protected]. Lease the talents of 20+ year proven franchise executive, who has seen and solved these problems before.

It is understandable why so many franchises fight wage increases, benefits increases, etc.

They have established a competitive landscape and business model that depends on low, low wages.

I read an article last week that in Denmark, the average pay at Burger King is $20/hr with full health benefits. So, people pay more for burgers.

That is true across all the food franchises, so there is no competitive disadvantage to paying employees a living wage.

I have also wondered at times if in the US a lot of the franchisor pressure against health care is really a concern about royalties.

If the franchisee pays more for employee health care that means they may have less available to pay royalties. There is no way to know what is motivating HQ folks, but I wonder if that has a lot to do with things.

Franchising is a great business model. It can work even when employees aren't paid the minimum wage, and even when franchisees are treated more transparently.

Australia recently made changes to its Franchise code that should reduce some abuse of franchisors. I read a lot of submissions by people to the Franchise-Info columns. I appreciate they are stuck within a mental framework requiring pay and transparency must fall to the lowest common denominator.

If people opened up to different possibilities the industry could still thrive and would have a better reputation with potentially less conflicts.

Stu Levin, founder of the Franchise Wealth Academy, helps franchise owners to stop the financial bleeding and regain control of their lives by helping them decide, usually in 30 days or less, whether to fix the franchise or find a more personally profitable path.