Elections Matter — Thanx is Committed to Doing Our (Little) Part
Alongside our restaurant and retail customers (and their teams), we at Thanx are learning first-hand the criticality of local, state and federal elected officials. Our restaurant partners in particular have been decimated by the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis — as many as 100K restaurants have already gone under and 40% of restaurant operators believe it’s unlikely their business will be afloat six months from now without additional relief packages from the government, according to a recent National Restaurant Association study. It’s uncertain if that relief is coming. Whether it should and in what form is reasonably up for debate, depending on where you stand politically. But what should not be controversial at all, is that one of the most important responsibilities we have in a democracy is to vote and that the results will impact every one of us; Thanx is committed to doing our part.
At Thanx, we have declared Monday November 2 and Tuesday November 3 (Election Day) as paid company holidays. I have encouraged our team to use the days off to get involved in supporting our democratic process (or at the least, to find a bit of personal time to destress). Today, I am encouraging other CEOs to support voting efforts in some way, even if they are not well-positioned to offer paid time off; hiding from the real world is no way to lead. Among our restaurant friends, PINCHO (Otto Othman) and &Pizza (Michael Lastoria) are leading from the front with paid time off to vote… even in the middle of an economic crisis crushing their industry. Meanwhile, thousands of other companies across nearly every industry have already stepped up to make the same commitment. At Thanx we are proud to join and support two such organizations: the Civic Alliance, a nonpartisan group of businesses working together to build a future where everyone participates in shaping our country and Time To Vote, a nonpartisan movement, led by the business community, to contribute to the culture shift needed to increase voter participation in our country’s elections.
I am so honored that our team has embraced the opportunity and challenge to do our (little) part in democracy. Here are some of the non-partisan initiatives I have heard some Thanxers are signing up for (plus some generally useful information about the election):
Check Voter Registration Deadlines and Register
Want to know nationwide deadlines for registering to vote? Go here:
Sign Up to Be a Poll Worker
America is facing a record shortage of 250K poll workers, in part because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, it’s critical that our polls are open and operating efficiently for democracy to function. Consider signing up to be a poll worker (in some states you do not have to be a resident of that state — check individual “swing states” where it will matter to count every vote for a fair and accurate election). Some resources:
Get Educated and Get Out the Vote
GOTV efforts are often highly-politicized but here are some nonpartisan resources focused on encouraging unregistered and undecided voters to cast their ballot this year and get informed.
