ANALYSIS: Is Panera Bread Exempt From California’s New Fast Food Minimum Wage Law?

Published on March 5, 2024

With California’s new fast-food restaurant regulations set to take effect April 1, questions abound about what establishments are exempt from the new law. Whether Panera Bread is exempt became a point of controversy last week after it was revealed that the restaurant’s billionaire franchisee Greg Flynn donated $226,800 to California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s campaign since 2018, with some suggesting the money potentially helped carve out an exemption for the brand in the new law. There are 188 Panera Bread locations in California out of 2,183 in the nation, according to the company’s website. Mr. Flynn controls 24 of the sites in the Golden State. The Flynn Restaurants group is the second largest Panera franchisee in the world with more than 125 restaurants across eight states, according to the firm’s website....

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