City and County leadership issued a health and safety order January 13, 2021. Below are details about the order.
The “Protecting Customers and Employees and Preserving Adequate Workforce Capacity” order is intended to slow the local spread of COVID-19 and protect our economy and hospital systems. The order includes
01/08/2022 The Department of Labor was represented at argument by the Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar. After argument, our counsel remains cautiously optimistic that we are likely to succeed on our request for a stay, probably by a 5-4 or 6-3 vote. We are hopeful that we would receive an opinion—or at least an administrative stay of the ETS—before the close of business on Monday. At this point, counsel has advised that for companies who have not yet released their testing/vaccination plans, that they hold off until at least the end of day Monday to allow the Court to rule. Of course, we know that many companies have already released their plans in anticipation of the January 10th compliance date, but nonetheless, we are hopeful that we will receive a favorable decision from the Supreme Court this weekend.
Congratulations to TRA Board Member Christy Lara, Public Relations of Albertson's Companies Southern Division - who was named a Women of Influence in the grocery industry. See page 34. Brookshire Grocery and Kroger were also recognized! Check it out!
Stealing to Sell - The Business of Organized Retail Crime
HOUSTON — Don’t call it shoplifting. It looks similar but this kind of professional stealing is known as organized retail crime.
“It’s a tremendous problem,” said Jac Brittain, editorial director of Loss Prevention Magazine. “What they’ll do is target specific products. In a lot of cases, they’ll have shopping lists of things that they’ve been told to steal.”
Appeals court temporarily halts Biden’s vaccine mandate on larger businesses
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted an emergency stay of the requirement that workers be vaccinated by Jan. 4 or face mask requirements and weekly tests.
NEW ORLEANS — A federal appeals court on Saturday temporarily halted the Biden administration’s vaccine requirement for businesses with 100 or more workers.The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted an emergency stay of the requirement by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration that those workers be vaccinated by Jan. 4 or face mask requirements and weekly tests.
NRF Letter to White House Regarding COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Mandate
On November 5th 2021, NRF sent a letter to President Biden regarding the COVID-19 vaccination and testing mandate under section 6(c)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Retailers nationwide are already concerned about the ability to provide the goods and services to customers this holiday season given the COVID-19 pandemic, chronic supply chain challenges, and the ongoing workforce shortage. This complex new federal mandate will only intensify difficult challenges. In the letter, we request an extension of the current deadlines contained in the rule.
FMI Expresses Concerns about OSHA Vaccine-Testing Mandate’s Impact on Food Supply Chain
Arlington, VA – On November 4th, 2021, FMI – The Food Industry Association Chief Public Policy Officer and Senior Vice President, Government and Public Affairs Jennifer Hatcher issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) for COVID-19 testing/vaccination. “At a time when our economy is facing a constrained labor supply, supply chain disruptions and high consumer demand, we are very concerned with the impact on the food supply chain posed by the ETS, particularly for workers in no-contact or low-contact positions. As written, the ETS does not balance key issues like a lack of testing availability for employers and the likelihood of significant workforce attrition due to the mandate, particularly among truck drivers...
Thank you all for a successful 2021 Texas Retailers Forum!
After a two year wait, Forum was back on October 26, 2021 and TRA was happy to host many special guests as well as honor the Texas Retailers Award winners. Thank you to all who joined us for this great event, and let's work on making 2022 bigger and better.
George Kelemen, Texas Retailers Association President/CEO has accepted a job offer at a national association and will be leaving TRA at the end of September. He spent the last 6 years serving the retail industry in representation of Texas retail leaders during unprecedented times. The Texas Retailers Association is grateful for his service and wish him the best of luck in his future role in Washington, D.C.
Texas Governor issues an executive order on July 29, 2021
Late the week, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, issued a clarifying executive order stating that there will be no mask or vaccine mandates in Texas, at any level of Government. Texans are encouraged to be responsible in combating the spread of COVID19...
How do Independent Community Grocers Impact Your State & District?
The National Grocers Association has developed a very creative interactive website to show the impact local grocers have on the economy. It breaks it down by Congressional District. Click below to check out how this impacts your community.
Retailers Score Major Legislative Victories - Recap of the 87th Texas Legislature
The 87th Session of the Texas Legislature officially concluded and was gaveled Sine Die, on Monday, May 31st. This was a session like no other, given the overlay of the COVID-19 pandemic, a new House Speaker in Dade Phelan, as well as the unprecedented winter storm in February. Despite all of the associated challenges, the Texas Retailers Association (TRA) team went to work on your behalf in the halls of the Capitol building, both virtually and in person, to deliver one of the most successful outcomes for retailers from any state legislative session in recent memory.
Kroger trades $250,000 for naming rights to UNT's food pantry
With a $250K donation from @Kroger, #UNT will continue its efforts to serve students experiencing food insecurity. The support will ensure the UNTPantrycan provide healthy and nutritious food to students in need for years to come.
Texas Retailers from all over the state and the US will join special guests on a virtual zoom meeting to discuss issues that affect the retail industry. Members of TRA will discuss their support or opposition for various bills that affect the grocery industry, tax laws, and labor laws in Texas. Click here for more information
TRA's Statement on Gov. Abbott's Announcement 3/2/2021 - Statewide COVID-19 Restrictions to End 3/10/2021
This afternoon, Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced an Executive Order that effective March 10, 2021, ALL businesses across Texas will be allowed to be open at 100% for occupancy, as well as Ending the statewide face covering/ mask mandate.Click here to see the Executive Order.
The Governor’s new order also states that local governments cannot impose fines to individuals or businesses for not wearing face coverings/ masks. While stressing personal responsibility and continuing to be vigilant to slow the spread of COVID, the Governor stated that individuals and businesses were free to operate as appropriate with respect to individual or business specific restrictions. Our understanding from the Governor’s office is that as a result of the Governor’s action today, retailers in Texas will not be in the position of enforcing or policing the wearing of face coverings, nor face fines or penalties for allowing unmasked customers to be in their stores.
Small Business Administration's Paycheck Protection Program - As updated by the Economic Aid Act
Webinar hosted by NRF on the latest COVID-19 relief deal and the changes to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Policy experts from Steptoe provide key updates and answer questions about these changes. (Recorded 1/12/21)
The COVID-19 pandemic and the recent extreme winter weather has affected the retail sector extremely hard. The sudden changes have impacted the entire industry. However, we want to shine a light on some retailers that have stepped up in the midst of this global crisis, to respond to the community with donations, and financial commitments that help to aid those in need during these unprecedented times. To all of these, and more retailers that are doing what they can during this time -- THANK YOU!
Check out the TRA Coronavirus Member Update Dashboard. View the latest up-to-date information directly from each member company and TRA affiliate posting updates related to the Coronavirus pandemic. See comments from: H-E-B, National Retail Federation (NRF), Walmart, Kroger, Lowe's Markets, Albertson's Markets, Target, Brookshire's, Brookshire Brothers, National Grocer's Association (NGA), Retail Leaders Association (RILA), Officer of the Governor Greg Abbott, The Hill, Food Marketing Institute (FMI), Center for Disease Control (CDC), Albertsons, Tom Thumb, Randall's, JCPenney, The Home Depot, Walgreens, Dollar General, Lowe's Home Improvement, Academy Sports & Outdoors, Macy's
Media Inquiries For media calls/ request for comments, please email us here. Texas Retailers Assn. will promptly get back to you regarding your inquiry.
