The United States Senate, with Vice President Kamala Harris casting the tie-breaking vote, passed the joint budget resolution Friday, which will enable President Joe Biden’s COVID relief package to be passed under the reconciliation process, meaning a simple majority vote. The House of Representatives will follow suit almost immediately. While the restaurant industry was a big winner, Senator Bernie Sanders (D.-VT) was not. His proposal to include a $15 per hour federal-wage increase was rejected, and then some. This week on the Working Lunch podcast, the team from Align Public Strategies takes a look at all those moving parts.

Despite all the focus on corporate behavior and responsibility, a lot of companies are playing hardball and fighting back on new laws and costly mandates. The team takes a look at the grocery sector’s fight against hazard pay requirements and how the platform companies are taking the fight to politicians as well. The podcast wraps up with the weekly legislative scorecard.

Working Lunch · Episode 198: COVID Relief Passes Congress: Restaurants Win Big, Bernie Sanders Loses Big.

Align Public Strategies is a full-service public affairs and creative firm that helps corporate brands, governments and nonprofits navigate the outside world and inform their internal decision-making. This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of Nation's Restaurant News or Restaurant Hospitality.