In a speech focused on a possible world war, a global pandemic and a historic rebuild of America, President Biden still managed to slip a few calls to action into his State of the Union Address that would directly impact a restaurateur’s weekly struggle to make payroll.
The annual big-picture update from the chief executive touched on such granular matters as holding down the wholesale cost of meat and raising the minimum wage.
Noticeably absent was any talk of channeling financial aid to the restaurant industry or other business sectors. But the hourlong presentation drew praise from the Independent Restaurant Coalition for including a vow to go after businesses that defrauded the federal government of earlier financial assistance.
Here's a rundown of points from Biden’s address that have direct relevance to the restaurant industry.
Fighting inflation
“I grew up in a family where if the price of food went up, you felt it,” Biden commented. “I get it. That’s why my top priority is getting prices under control.”
The president was referring to the prices consumers pay, but the remedies he mentioned would similarly keep wholesale costs in check. Those tactics include hammering down utility costs by extending tax breaks to businesses that cut their demand for energy.
He also called for fostering competition among protein suppliers. “You got four basic meatpacking facilities,” he ad-libbed. “That’s it. You play with them or you don’t get to play at all. And you pay a hell of a lot more—a hell of a lot more because there’s only four.”
He’s already indicated that his administration intends to provide the seed funding and knowhow to multiply competition among processors.
The president also promised a crackdown on shippers and other links in the import supply chain that gouged business during the pandemic.
Taxation
Biden blasted the tax cuts that Congress passed during the Trump administration, saying the breaks extended to high-income individuals and corporations deepened the federal deficit without helping the middle and working classes.
“Last year, 55 of the Fortune 500 companies earned $40 billion in profit and paid zero in federal taxes. It’s not fair,” Biden said. “That’s why I proposed a 15% minimum tax rate for corporations.”
Deepening the labor pool
Among the most applauded of Biden’s pledges was his promise to bring down the cost of child care. The president repeated the desire of his administration and political party to cap the cost at 7% of a family’s household income.
The beneficiaries would include “millions of women who left the workforce during the pandemic because they couldn’t afford child care to be able to get back to work,” Biden continued.
Without airing any specifics, he also vowed to increase job training and apprenticeships.
Similarly, Biden called on the nation to comprehensively reform its immigration policies and laws, without saying how they should be changed.
Higher wages, more benefits, more unions
Biden reiterated his party’s long-standing insistence on raising the federal minimum wage, currently at $7.25 an hour, to $15. But he did not say how his administration intends to make that so-called living wage a reality when the national pay floor hasn’t changed since 2009.
Similarly, he sounded the Democrats’ call for establishing paid leave as a standard benefit for workers, and urged Congress to pass the Pro Act, a bill that would make unionizing easier for employees.
“When a majority of workers want to form a union, they shouldn’t be able to be stopped,” Biden said. His comments came on the day the count of Starbucks stores looking to unionize hit 114.
‘New moment’ in the pandemic
Among the components of Biden’s speech that drew considerable attention from on-air analysts and other media commentators were his comments on the coronavirus crisis. As many noted, the president seemed to suggest the pandemic has morphed into more of an epidemic—a widespread and serious danger, but one we can manage through vaccines and treatments.
“Tonight I can say we’re moving forward safely, back to a norm- — more normal routines,” Biden said. He called it a "new moment."
His words on that topic were underscored by the decision of Congress and the White House to drop their mask requirements. Last year, the State of the Union could not be delivered to Congress in person. This year, the chamber was packed, and few attendees wore face coverings.