Legislative, Regulatory & Legal

PayPal announced it is cancelling plans to open a new operations center in North Carolina after the state passed a law that many see as restricting protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. The news comes as leaders of the High Point Market, the largest furnishings industry trade show in the world, warned that “hundreds and perhaps thousands” of customers will not attend the Market, held in High Point, North Carolina in April, due to their opposition to the new law. The Market attracts retailers, designers, suppliers and manufacturers.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to take up an appeal from Wal-Mart Stores to throw out a class action judgment over its treatment of workers in Pennsylvania, Reuters reported.

In the case, hourly employees of Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club had brought a class action lawsuit, claiming they were not compensated for rest breaks and off-the-clock work as mandated in their policies. The case impacted some 187,000 Wal-Mart employees who worked in Pennsylvania between 1998 and 2006.

Longtime Walmart executive Tom Coughlin, an inspirational leader who played a key role in Walmart’s growth and left the company in 2005, passed away on April 1.

In a move that will directly impact retail and fast-food chains, California legislatures approved a plan to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2022, which will give the state the highest minimum wage in the nation. The measure will be signed into law on Monday by California Gov. Jerry Brown.

For many business owners, the ongoing feud for control of the Republican Party has largely come, unfortunately, at their expense.

Over the last 10 years or so we have witnessed the balance of power within the party shift from economic conservatives and the business community - to social conservatives and the interest groups that serve them. I have labeled this fight as one between the "suits" and the "boots." Over the last two election cycles, the boots have clearly demonstrated that they are in charge.

To sophisticated landlords and property managers, co-tenancy provisions contained in commercial leases are routine and (relatively) unexciting. Unfortunately — and perhaps as a result — such clauses are often overlooked. But a co-tenancy default can have a significant impact on a landlord’s bottom line, so landlords and their agents who manage their properties should understand how these provisions operate and the remedies to which a tenant is entitled in the event of a default.

In a history-making move that would have a direct impact on the retail industry and food service sector, the state of California has moved closer to raising the statewide minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2022.

A court ruling struck down a provision adopted by Puerto Rico last year that tripled the tax revenue the debt-laden island extracted from Walmart, Reuters reported. [Reuters]