Move over Chick-fil-A, fast food is getting political again.
Papa John’s came under fire this week when CEO John Schnatter floated a plan to cut worker hours to reduce spiking employee health care costs under the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare.
Now, Applebee’s is being boycotted after a major New York area Applebee’s franchise owner Zane Tankel threatened a hiring freeze and possible layoffs as a result of the president’s healthcare plan.
Twitter immediately erupted with calls for a boycott.
‘So far I’ve seen Papa John’s and Applebees threatening to fire people since their choice didn’t win the election. Disgusting on either side,’ read one tweet.
‘BOYCOTT APPLEBEES NOW,’ read another.
‘Add @Applebees to the list of unpatriotic businesses who are firing people because Barack Obama won,’ tweeted another.
The Twitter uproar is in response to a Fox News interview Thursday with Zane Tankel, chairman and CEO of Apple-Metro, which owns 40 New York-area Applebee’s restaurants.
“We’ve calculated it will [cost] some millions of dollars across our system. So what does that say — that says we won’t build more restaurants. We won’t hire more people,” Tankel said.
Apple-Metro employs from 80 to 300 people at each of its Applebee’s. Obamacare requires businesses with more than 50 workers must offer an approved insurance plan or pay a penalty of $2,000 for each full-time worker over 30 workers.
‘If you have 40 or 50 employees at a restaurant, and the penalty is $2,000, and you’re going to pay $80,000 or $100,000 penalty, there goes the profit in your restaurant.’
Tankel also hinted that lay-off and reducing employee hours were another possibility
‘I want to simply say we are looking at it, we are evaluating,’ he said. ‘If it’s possible to do without cutting people back, I am delighted to do it, but that also rolls back expansion, it rolls back hiring more people, and in a best-case scenario, we only shrink the labor force minimally. Best case.’
Earlier this week Papa John’s CEO John Schnatter told shareholders in a conference call this week that Obamacare would cost the company 11 to 14 cents per pizza, a cost that would be passed on to customers.
The response on Twitter was immediate, and largely unfavorable.
‘First Chick-fil-A, now Papa John’s. What does it say about the US when fast food has become the tool for political catalyst?’ tweeted one person.
‘Thanks 4 letting us know how CHEAP you are. 10 cents?! REALLY! Officially on my DO NOT BUY LIST even if you don’t up the price.’
Schnatter defended his plan.
‘That’s what you do, is you pass on the costs,’ Schnatter told Naples News. ‘Unfortunately, I don’t think people know what they’re going to pay for [Obamacare].’
Schnatter isn’t alone among chain restaurants looking to balance the costs of health care reform.
As the program mandates that only employees working more than 30 hours a week are covered under their employers health insurance plan, chains like Olive Garden and Red Lobster are already considering reduced worker hours.
Isn’t the free market great? One can choose to patronize Applebee’s, Papa John’s, Chick-Filet or not based on their owner’s policies and reputation. Also, whether or not to work there. I am sure that someone will set up a site to highlight those companies which are making political statements to show their greed and selfishness.
We are all in this together. The country decided to pass Obamacare. All businesses are affected and those companies that best integrate the increased costs (as well as the benefits) into their operations will succeed, those that don’t will not. It is called competition.
What is next? I suppose Papa John’s in New York will add an additonal amount to their pizzas because of storm Sandy. Or how about an addtional amount for the rising cost of electricity?
A single payer system would have resolved many of these issues.
Employers need to integrate any additional personnel costs into their business budget, as they do any costs. Should we expect Papa John’s in Denver to lower costs because of increased sales due to marijuana legalization? That would be a story!