For the restaurant industry — one of the top employers of immigrants in the U.S. — ever-shifting immigration laws have created an especially tough labor landscape to navigate over the past couple of years.
This week brought a reprieve for one large group of workers: Salvadorans who had been at risk of losing Temporary Protected Status (TPS) can continue to live and work legally in the U.S. for now, as the Trump administration weighs its next move.
The development comes as Haitian workers have already lost the same temporary protections. The Department of Homeland Security terminated Haiti's TPS designation on July 27, requiring employers to reverify the employment authorization of affected workers.
In other government-related news, New York City passed new menu-labeling requirements for high-sodium and high-sugar foods, the Common Cents Act is one step closer to passing, and more.
Salvadoran employees can keep working for now
The Trump administration said on Sept. 9 that Salvadorans covered by Temporary Protected Status will retain their protections for now, despite an earlier plan to end their work authorization status. The administration did not provide a timeline for a final decision. TPS allows eligible nationals of designated countries to remain and work legally in the U.S. when conditions in their home countries make return unsafe or impractical.
An important note: DHS has not announced a permanent extension; the current status is that protections and work authorization remain in place temporarily.
Why should foodservice care: El Salvador is the third-largest foreign country of birth among restaurant and foodservice employees, behind Mexico and China, according to National Restaurant Association data. Salvadoran-born workers make up about 1.1% of the restaurant and foodservice workforce, compared with 0.6% of the overall U.S. employed workforce.
The Common Cents Act is one step closer to reality
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Common Cents Act on Monday, about a month after the Senate passed its own version of the legislation.
The bill would stop the Treasury from minting pennies and establish rules allowing cash transactions to be rounded to the nearest 5 cents when exact change is unavailable.
The measure now heads back to the Senate for a final vote.
Why should foodservice care: If enacted, the legislation would affect how restaurants handle cash payments and receipts. If passed, operators will eventually need to account for cash rounding when calculating customer totals. The updated guidelines provide a fair balance between rounding up for providing change (in favor of the customer) and rounding down (in favor of the business).
NYC restaurants will now have to label high-sugar and high-sodium foods
On Sept. 10, the New York City Council passed two related menu labeling bills. INT-0547-B requires restaurants to place a warning icon on menus next to foods and beverages that exceed 100% of the USDA daily recommended value for added sugars.
Int 0196-C expands New York City’s existing high-sodium labeling laws to create a new "very high sodium" warning for food and drinks that contain 6,000 mg or more. Restaurants would have to implement a separate warning for items containing at least 2,300 mg of sodium per serving.
The law gives the city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene one year after it issues the required rules for restaurants to implement the warnings. Violations would carry no penalty for a first offense, followed by $100 for a second violation and $200 for subsequent violations.
Why should foodservice care: New York City restaurants will eventually have to update menus, menu boards, and third-party delivery listings to comply with the new requirements.
Appeals court upholds NLRB ruling against Starbucks
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued two Starbucks-related decisions on Sept. 4 involving union-busting allegations. In one case, the court enforced the NLRB's finding that a manager at a Wichita, Kansas, store unlawfully threatened an employee with the loss of benefits because of union activity. At the same time, the court rejected several other NLRB findings and is sending the matter back to the agency.
A separate case concerned union organizing at multiple Starbucks stores in the Buffalo market in 2021–22. Starbucks Workers United ultimately won elections at eight stores and lost at one store in the area.
The NLRB originally identified 125 labor violations at these stores, and the court upheld a substantial portion of these, accusing Starbucks of changing wage increases and disciplining employees due to union activity, tightening workplace rules after union activity, and violating bargain obligations.
Why should foodservice care: Although most restaurant chains are not unionized because many are franchised, the ruling underscores the importance of applying workplace policies consistently and being cautious about rule changes and communications during union elections.
Restaurant managers cannot keep a portion of the tip pool, DOL says
The Department of Labor issued an opinion letter on Sept. 7 addressing whether a restaurant supervisor can keep part of other employees' tips while also working as a bartender. The department said the Fair Labor Standards Act prohibits the manager from keeping any portion of other employees' tips, even when they also perform bartending duties.
The opinion, however, distinguishes between tips from a tip pool and tips given directly to a manager.
Why should foodservice care: Restaurants that use managers or supervisors to fill tipped positions should review how those employees participate in tip pools, and should update their in-store policies accordingly.
Contact Joanna at joanna.fantozzi@informa.com
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