The International Franchise Association didn’t just file one of the most hilarious lawsuits ever in their futile quest to overturn Seattle’s new $15 minimum wage ordinance, they also created a pathetically lazy video to support it! As the folks at Working Washington quickly discovered, every single person shown is taken directly from the popular stock footage library, Pond5:
- Young asian woman smiling face
- Young hispanic man smiling at camera
- Portrait Of Young Happy Handsome Man In Glasses
- Friendly Female Barista In A Coffee Shop Serving Customers
- Young Pretty Woman Working As Florist In Shop And Smiling (Note: they color-adjusted the apron so it’s Starbucks green!)
- Attractive Female Business Owner On The Phone Behind The Counter Of Her Shop
- African American Woman Close Looks Up Smiles Into Camera
- Man Looking At Seattle Skyline
That’s pretty much a laundry list of politically correct inclusiveness picked straight from the Pond5 catalog. Not a single actual real business owner or worker in the bunch.
So how much did the IFA spend to hack together a video like this? My guess is a lot. One of the signers on yesterday’s absurdly crappy complaint was former Bush Administration Solicitor General Paul D. Clement, who reportedly charges more than $1,000 an hour for his service. So no doubt the IFA paid top dollar for this crappy video too.
Which raises the question: If America’s franchises can afford to pay $1,000 an hour for crap like this, why can’t they afford to pay $15 an hour to their own employees?
It isn’t that the “can’t” afford it, it is the fact that addictive junk food is a cash cow for the owners of the franchises and the corporation. McDonalds, for example, is NOT a restaurant company. It is a real-estate leasing company that leases the land, sells the name and then demands total control of the product in return for providing specific products to support the business. What happens when one of the franchisees starts doing things like giving raises to the workers or actually even paying them what they are owed under State and Federal laws, is either the Corporation will yank the franchise, or merely build another, identical restaurant a block or two away and then give that new franchisee huge discounts on the supplied products to support it. All the big chain restaurants do this. It is a universal practice in the industry.
Wage theft is so common in these places it is unenforceable. We need a Statewide minimum wage of $15 an hour, coupled with real, painful fines and other sanctions for companies that steal their workers labor, including flat out revoking their charters. The economy would improve dramatically, and the corporation wouldn’t feel it at all. One days profits from selling french fries could pay for all of that.
If you read investing blogs, as I do, you’ll see numerous comments referring to workers as lazy, unskilled, uneducated, burger-flipping teenagers. This from people who don’t work, add no value, they just collect dividends and flip stocks.
Workers need to realize the hustlers who populate the business world have no respect for them. Many capitalism-worshippers have a bad attitude toward workers. They think workers don’t deserve to be paid.
This is what workers are up against. Workers and those who represent them have to get tough with these people. Don’t waste sympathy on them, because they have none for you. Focus on getting the best deal you can, because that’s what they do.
As General Patton would put it, grab ’em by the nose and kick ’em in the ass until they pay you what you’re worth — not what they think you’re worth. It’s the only way you’ll ever get it out of them. They themselves will tell you nice guys finish last. So don’t be nice to them.
business schmucks use schmucky business PR graphics? eh, this is low-hanging/rotting fruit, Goldy
how about that full-page ad in today’s seattletimes for the mayor’s new deputy in charge of keeping the business interests off the mayor’s back; Kate Joncas? she’s so connected to business interests she trails a fiber-optic connection from her heel.
Like was said before, it’s the principle of the thing. If employers have to pay more, the employers lose some “control”.
And some small fraction of profits. Never forget that.
Typical USA-style business management – can’t spend anything on labor so have to outsource video production, end up spending triple what it would have cost to insource production, and get a crappy final product.
#5 pretty much nailed it. We are living in a Dilbert world. Embrace the suck!
Susan Hutcherson provided the unique WASPy “voice of privilege” voice over.
Eric Cantor’s polling firm, McLaughlin & Associates approved the spot, they predicted it was a game changer.
You mean Susan “nonpartisan” Hutchinson? As for Paul Clement, I guess a $1000/hr doesn’t buy what it once did.
$15 NOW & it’s supporters have an obsession with conflating all businesses to McDonalds in order to demonize all business with the same brush
“So how much did the IFA spend to hack together a video like this?”
The total cost for the video clips was $426.98. Cyberlink PowerDirector12 video editing software can be downloaded for $74.99.
How much does it cost? As far as video and the software to edit it, I’d say little more than what it would cost for a half hour of former Bush Administration Solicitor General Paul D. Clement’s $1000/Hr nearly invaluable time.
“Typical USA-style business management – can’t spend anything on labor so have to outsource video production, end up spending triple what it would have cost to insource production, and get a crappy final product.”
Not this time. This was done on the cheap. Real cheap. It doesn’t look like there were professionals involved at any level. What would crack me up would be to learn that the International Franchise Association paid through the nose for that POS.
“Susan Hutcherson”
Heh. Talk about cheap.
Meanwhile, Starbucks isn’t a franchise and so the small business exemption would never, ever apply to Starbucks regardless.
@11 now now, let’s not let facts get in the way of a good story. That is just not playing fair!
Wow, I can see the level of thought that goes in to these comments is staggering. Clearly I am the only one who has posted here who ever ran a business, you think it is easy you should go ahead an try it, but here are few things you should know:
You need to have government mandated insurance (workers comp, liability and now depending on size and employees health ins)
You need to secure space, equipment, product raw materials, figure in waste, loss, and theft.
Add in the cost of labor @ $15/hr fully loaded is around $810/week. At what point does the risk out way the reward?
You idiots do realize that you are going to end up paying for this, right? When a McDonalds happy meal is $10.00, do you really think people are going to stay in your shitty little city? Do you think businesses are going to stay there? I certainly wouldn’t.
I didn’t go in to business to create jobs, or give back to the community, it is a by product of my business. I took a significant risk, put my ass on the line and did it to provide a good life for my family. Seattle is taking none of the risk, employees assume none of the risk, all of the risk is carried by the business owner.
Seattle will become the next Detroit, the unions ruined Detroit- should be a lesson to real thinking people