This “old fashioned” fast-food hamburger franchise in Omaha, Nebraska, is following the lead of other restaurants to avoid Obamacare charges.
We first saw businesses cutting its employees’ hours to escape the Affordable Care Act healthcare mandate with Darden Restaurants, Inc., which operates Olive Garden and Red Lobster. Then Denny’s made headlines when it said it’d be doing the same thing, but possibly adding a surcharge to combat the mandate.
Now all non-management employees from 11 Wendy’s restaurants in Omaha, Nebraska, will see their hours reduced to 28 per week in order to get out of paying the Obamacare tax.
Gary Burdette, VP of Operations for the local franchise, said that as a small business owner he can’t afford to pay for everyone’s health insurance. The decision affects around 100 employees and is effective in two weeks for all non-management. Management employees will continue to have benefits as they are officially full time.
It’s important to note that this is just for the 11 Wendy’s restaurants in the Omaha area and is not a nationwide effort at this time.
Does this appear to be a viable solution for other businesses? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.