#103: Talmon Smith — Economics Reporter for The New York Times, Harvard Institute of Politics National Campaign Ambassador

Navigating the restaurant industry can be tough for workers involved in it. 

From constantly changing schedules, demanding, and unruly customers, even A.I. and robots beginning to disrupt the space, restaurant workers are contending with a lot these days.

The last thing they need is an organization using their own wages to lobby against increases to the minimum wage, which is exactly what’s happening through the ServSafe certification.

Talmon Smith is an Economic Reporter for The New York Times, a Harvard Institute of Politics National Campaign Ambassador, and a former fellow at the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy. Much of Talmon’s work focuses on labor issues regarding wages, corruption, and racial politics.

Alongside previous guest David Fahrenthold, Talmon co-authored the article  “How Restaurant Workers Pay for Lobbying to Keep Their Wages Low,” that delves into how the National Restaurant Association (NRA), the largest foodservice trade association in the world, utilizes the fifteen dollar fee from required ServSafe courses to fund their own lobbying efforts.

We wanted to get Talmon’s perspective on what was most surprising about putting together the article, the legal intricacies of how the NRA set up such a system, and the “benefits” of ServSafe, and if it really helps workers.

In a time when restaurant workers, once lauded as essential workers, are now increasingly under pressure to do more with less, this is another episode you’re not going to want to miss. 

So, with that…let’s bring it in!