Abrupt Closure Of Friendly's Stores Prompts Federal Bill

PEABODY, MA — The April closing of 23 Friendly's restaurants, including three Massachusetts, may mean tougher federal regulations for businesses. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) introduced the Fair Warning Act of 2019 Sunday, which would strengthen existing federal rules to give employees more warning about layoffs. Of the stores Friendly's closed in April, 15 were in upstate New York.

The closings revealed "gaping loopholes in the WARN Act that allow companies to callously lay-off employees without so much as a day’s notice, and they need to be closed immediately," Schumer said in a statement. "No...employee should show up to their workplace in the morning, only to find that it had been shuttered overnight."

Based in Wilbraham, MA, Friendly's has closed additional locations since April. It now has about 160 locations, down from 197 at the start of the year, and 254 restaurants when it exited bankruptcy protection in 2012. At its peak, Friendly's operated 850 restaurants in 15 states.