Are Desi District Franchise Group and the franchisee joint employers?
Desi_District Franchise · 2024 FDDAnswer from 2024 FDD Document
Franchisee is solely responsible for the terms and conditions of employment of all of its personnel, including recruiting, hiring, training, scheduling, supervising, compensation, and termination.
Franchisee is solely responsible for all actions of its personnel.
Franchisee and Desi District Franchise Group are not joint employers, and no employee of Franchisee will be an agent or employee of Desi District Franchise Group.
Within seven days of Desi District Franchise Group's request, Franchisee and each of its employees will sign an acknowledgment form stating that Franchisee alone (and not Desi District Franchise Group) is the employee's sole employer.
Franchisee will use its legal name on all documents with its employees and independent contractors, including, but not limited to, employment applications, time cards, pay checks, and employment and independent contractor agreements, and Franchisee will not use the Marks on any of these documents.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 52)
What This Means (2024 FDD)
According to Desi District's 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document, Desi District Franchise Group and its franchisees are not considered joint employers. The franchisee is responsible for all employment-related aspects of their personnel. This includes recruiting, hiring, training, scheduling, supervising, compensating, and terminating employees. The franchisee is also solely responsible for the actions of their personnel.
To further clarify this relationship, Desi District requires that franchisees and their employees sign an acknowledgment form confirming that the franchisee is the employee's sole employer, not Desi District Franchise Group. Additionally, franchisees must use their legal name on all employment-related documents, such as applications, time cards, and paychecks, and are prohibited from using Desi District's trademarks on these documents.
This arrangement is typical in franchising, where franchisees operate as independent business owners. While Desi District may set minimum qualifications for certain employee categories and require training programs for the franchisee's staff, these measures are designed to maintain brand standards and do not establish an employer-employee relationship between Desi District and the franchisee's employees. This independence provides the franchisee with greater control over their workforce but also places the full burden of employment-related liabilities on the franchisee.