The Learned Concierge - December 2024, Vol. 15
The Learned Concierge
Welcome to your monthly legal insights on the trends impacting the Retail, Hospitality, and Food & Beverage Industries.
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Cybersecurity & Privacy
The Monthly Rundown of All Things Cyber, Privacy, and Technology
Click here to read the Right to Know – November 2024, Volume 23
A View from California: CPPA Advances Key Privacy Regulations and Data Broker Rules
Myriah Jaworski and Ali Bloom authored an article, A View From California: CPPA Advances Key Privacy Regulations and Data Broker Rules.
On Nov. 8, the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) Board voted to advance several significant privacy regulations, including new provisions under the CCPA affecting data brokers, as well as the initiation of the formal rulemaking process for additional regulations covering insurance, cybersecurity audits, risk assessments, and automated decision-making technologies (ADMT).
If adopted, these regulations will have significant implications for businesses operating in California, particularly regarding consumer privacy rights, data broker registration, and data processing practices.
Food & Beverage
FDA’s Human Foods 2025 Goals: Microbiological Safety, Food Chemical Safety & Nutrition
FDA’s fiscal year 2025 priority deliverables for the Human Foods Program emphasize transparency and accountability amid state funding cuts and resource constraints. Click here to learn more.
Nourish Food Marketing Releases Annual Trend Report for Food, Beverage, and Agriculture for 2025
Nourish Food Marketing, a full-service marketing agency specializing in food, beverage, and agricultural clients, is excited to release its 9th annual Trend Report for 2025. This year’s report reveals nine key trends that will shape the industry and consumer behavior in the coming year, driven by an increased demand for functionality, experiences, and sustainability in food choices. Click here to learn more about the key consumer shifts shaping 2025 and beyond.
USDA-FDA Seek Information About Food Date Labeling, Aim is to Provide Further Clarity, Transparency and Cost Savings for U.S. Consumers
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today are announcing a joint Request for Information (RFI) about food date labeling, which includes the use of terms such as ‘Sell By,’ ‘Use By’ and ‘Best By’. The RFI seeks information on industry practices and preferences for date labeling, research results on consumer perceptions of date labeling and any impact date labeling may have on food waste and grocery costs. Click here to learn more.
International Trade
Ethics in the Supply Chain: The Role of Food Labels
Consumers are becoming increasingly concerned about the origin and quality of food products. Food labels are no longer just basic identifiers for ingredients or nutritional information. Over the years with increasing awareness, food labels have evolved into symbols of transparency, sustainability, and ethics across the food supply chain. However, as the need for ethical activities increases, so does the need for labels that genuinely reflect the origins of our food. Click here to learn how food labels play an important role in upholding ethics in the supply chain, and why they matter more than we realize.
Labor & Employment
Texas Court Strikes Down DOL’s Increase in the Minimum Salary Threshold for Exempt Employees
Laura Calhoun authored an article, “Texas Court Strikes Down DOL’s Increase in the Minimum Salary Threshold for Exempt Employees.
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), most employees are entitled to be paid at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime pay (at a rate not less than 1.5 times the regular rate of pay) for all hours worked over 40 hours in a single workweek. There are, however, various circumstances when an employee may be “exempt” from the minimum wage and overtime requirements of the FLSA.
New York Retail Safety Act
On Sept. 5, Governor Kathy Hochul signed the New York Retail Worker Safety Act into law. Covered retail employers have until March 4, 2025, to ensure compliance with the law’s new requirements for the adoption of polices and training for workplace violence prevention. Specifically, the Act requires a workplace violence prevention policy that (1) outlines a list of factors or situations in the workplace that might place retail employees at risk of workplace violence, (2) outlines methods that the employer may use to prevent incidents of workplace violence, (3) includes information concerning the federal and state statutory provisions concerning violence against retail workers and remedies available to victims of violence, and (4) states that retaliation against individuals who complain of workplace violence, or who testify or assist in any is unlawful. The Act also requires a workplace violence prevention training program providing, among other things, information on the requirements under the law, active shooter drills and training on areas of previous security problems. Finally, effective January 1, 2027, covered retail employers with 500 or more retail employees nationwide must provide access to “panic” buttons throughout the workplace to summon immediate assistance from law enforcement. Click here to learn more.
New York Provides Paid Prenatal Leave
Effective January 1, 2025, New York employers will be required to provide employees with 20 hours of paid prenatal leave. New York State Paid Prenatal Leave
Employees will be able to take such leave for prenatal healthcare service appointments during their pregnancy or related to their pregnancy. This requirement applies to all employers regardless of the number employees. The NY Department of Labor has published guidance to help employers comply. Frequently Asked Questions
Legislative Updates
The Trump Agenda: Here’s What to Expect from His Second Term
Donald Trump has promised the largest deportation of immigrants in American history, sweeping new tariffs on imports, a freeze on climate-related regulations, a remaking of federal health agencies, and ideological changes in the education system. Trump’s policy goals don’t just look to undo the work of the Biden administration. He looks to remake policies — and the federal agencies that create them — at their core. Click here to learn more about the nine policy areas under the Trump presidency, what the president-elect is proposing, and what is actually possible.
Beyond Tariffs: What Donald Trump’s Election Means for Retailers
After his sweeping win, the potential for Donald Trump to impose new tariffs on imported goods immediately caught the retail industry’s attention.
However, the question of tariffs could be distracting retail leaders from examining more broadly what the election reveals about the mood of the nation’s consumers and the issues that concern them.
Among the more subtle messages voters conveyed with important implications for retailers concern issues such as retail leadership, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies, and delivering authentic marketing messages in the right places. Click here to learn more.
Tax
2025 Economic Package: Key Changes in Tax Matters
Mario Barrera, Catalina Mandujano, and Andrea Iturbide authored an article, “2025 Economic Package: Key Changes in Tax Matters.”
On Nov. 15, the Federal Executive Branch presented the Economic Package for 2025 (“EP 2025”) to Congress, which estimates around 294 billion United States Dollars (“USD”) in tax revenue.
The EP is a set of proposals, policies, and provisions that the Executive Branch presents annually to Congress by Nov. 15 at the latest, aimed at defining the main tax, budgetary, and financial guidelines for the Government for the following fiscal year.
Industry Trends
Consultant Bullish on Trump’s Impact on Retail, E-Commerce, FreightTech M&A
With the new Trump administration come expectations of regulatory changes, including potential shifts at the FTC, that could unlock M&A activity. These shifts could mean promising activity in retail and e-commerce, as well as greater investment in supply chains. Click here to learn more.
US Retail Closures Hit Highest Level Since Pandemic
Coresight tracked 43 retail bankruptcies this year, a sharp increase from the 25 bankruptcies recorded in 2023. Click here to learn about the factors hindering retailers.
5 Essential Retail Strategies for 2024: Winning the BTS Shopping Season
As the Back-to-School (BTS) shopping season of 2024 unfolds, it is set against a backdrop of economic uncertainty and consumer caution. Inflation and rising living costs are significantly shaping consumer sentiment and spending habits. Our recent BTS shopper survey, detailed in the Ankura Back-to-School Shopping Report 2024, sheds light on how these economic factors are influencing BTS shoppers, highlighting the bifurcated consumer sentiment that presents both challenges and opportunities for retailers. Click here to read and delve into detailed insights, exploring the key challenges retailers face not only during the BTS season but throughout the remainder of 2024.
How Spatial AI Can Help Reshape Retail Experiences
Physical retail stores have been struggling, and the data shows that the trend is set to continue, with forecasts of over 45,000 stores expected to close their doors from 2024 to 2029.
So, what’s spatial AI? Fundamentally, it’s the fusion of artificial intelligence (AI) and geospatial technology, which enables computers to understand and interact with the nuances of the physical world in three dimensions.
It’s like giving AI a sense of space and place, allowing it to perceive, analyze and make decisions based on distance and physical relationships between objects. For retailers, it could be applied across numerous areas, from customer experience and store layout planning to supply-side management and optimization. Click here to learn more about spatial AI’s possible applications in more depth, focusing on real-time 3D spatial understanding and personalization.
This publication is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or a solicitation to provide legal services. The information in this publication is not intended to create, and receipt of it does not constitute, a lawyer-client relationship. Readers should not act upon this information without seeking professional legal counsel. The views and opinions expressed herein represent those of the individual author only and are not necessarily the views of Clark Hill PLC. Although we attempt to ensure that postings on our website are complete, accurate, and up to date, we assume no responsibility for their completeness, accuracy, or timeliness.