Q&A
Clarification on Mastro's position regarding minimum wage for fast food workers
4:18:17
·
167 sec
Council Member Powers seeks clarification on Mastro's earlier statements about his position on minimum wage increases for fast food workers. Mastro reiterates and elaborates on his argument that the $15 minimum wage should have been applied more broadly.
- Powers questions the characterization of Mastro's argument in the previous lawsuit
- Mastro insists he argued for a broader application of the $15 minimum wage
- Discussion of who Mastro's clients were in the case (franchise owners)
- Mastro maintains that his argument was about fairness and equal application of the wage increase
- Powers expresses skepticism about Mastro's characterization of his position
Keith Powers
4:18:17
Hey, guys.
4:18:17
Just a follow-up question on that because I I do feel like there's a characterization issue here with the case you're talking about.
4:18:24
And the argument that you're saying that you argued for all fast forward workers to make to make minimum wage feels a little disingenuous to me, a little maybe in the wrong word I'd use.
4:18:38
I believe the argument you were making was that the franchise owners should not be part of that $15 wage because they're small business owners.
4:18:47
Is that correct?
Randy Mastro
4:18:48
No.
4:18:49
The the argument was that governor Cuomo in the first instance only sought to impose the $15 minimum wage on these franchisees, on the misguided assumption that they were supported by the national chains.
4:19:05
When in reality, those franchisees pay for the right to be part of that national franchise, and they were going to be the only ones who had the obligation of the $15 minimum wage.
4:19:16
It's not disingenuous at all chairpowers, and I respect you tremendously.
4:19:21
But I actually was arguing, and I'll be happy to pull up the old court papers.
4:19:25
You know, I was actually arguing that all fast food workers not just the franchises of national chains should be getting the $15 minimum wage.
4:19:32
And then it wasn't right to just do it to those franchises.
Keith Powers
4:19:37
Who who is your client in that issue?
Randy Mastro
4:19:39
They were several franchises some of the more McDonald's, but there were multiple franchises.
Keith Powers
4:19:45
Understood.
4:19:46
I I think just to characterize this correctly.
4:19:48
I I think there may be an argument, to a policy argument, to discuss how franchise owners are are discussed in a larger conversation on national chains.
4:19:57
I think it would be miscalculation to say you were defending the pizza places and delis and other places who were not your client
Randy Mastro
4:20:04
Right.
Keith Powers
4:20:04
And not ask and and similarly concerned about what the franchise owners were concerned
Randy Mastro
4:20:08
I didn't say that they were my clients.
4:20:11
What I said was in characterizing that limited $15 relief for that limited class of establishments, national franchisees, that what made it irrational and discriminatory was that it should have been across the board.
4:20:30
Then we wouldn't have had a case.
4:20:31
And by the way, counsel and Brandon, when it went broader, There was no lawsuit.
4:20:37
We didn't challenge that.
4:20:39
That's what we'd actually advocated that there should be a $15 minimum wage across the board.
4:20:44
So when that happened, that's actually something that the the franchisees that I represented in that case thought was fair.
Keith Powers
4:20:54
Okay.
4:20:55
I also wanna make sure we we acknowledge it counselor Salamaka, counselor counselor in the northeast.
4:20:59
We're joining us virtually.
4:21:01
We're not gonna go to council member or brewer.