From the President
Welcome NJRHA Members,
At the NJ Restaurant & Hospitality Association, we are passionate about the NJ Hospitality Industry and the needs of business owners and operators like yourself! You work hard every day to provide exceptional service and memorable experiences, so WE work hard to protect and support your business. Through exclusive member benefits, the NJRHA provides cost-saving tools, critical information, unwavering advocacy and valuable connections to drive your business forward and help you sustain. We are your watchdog in proactive pursuit of State and Federal legislation that will protect you and help your business thrive.
The NJRHA has gone through a lot of positive changes since 2021! We have restructured our vendor partnership program, we onboarded an entirely new data system and we built our beautiful new website which is still in progress and will soon offer more robust resources, educational videos, data and current industry information. We redesigned our brand to convey the vibrance and bold personality of our industry. Additionally, we implemented a whole new and simplified Membership Program. Please visit the Membership page on this website for more details and pricing. If you have questions on this, please reach out to me directly at dlancellotti@njrha.org or call us at 609 599 3316.
Enclosed you will find an updated glimpse of some of our Exclusive Member Benefits. Please contact me directly anytime with questions, or to discuss specific needs or requests. I am proud to serve and support you and your business and I feel very fortunate to work with the people who make NJ restaurants and our hospitality industry vibrant and unforgettable.
On behalf of our NJRHA staff and our Board Chairman, Bhavesh Patel, I WELCOME YOU and thank you for all that you do!
Yours in Hospitality,
Dana Lancellotti
NJRHA President, CEO
NJRHA MEMBER-EXCLUSIVE BENEFITS
State Mandated Temporary Disability Coverage:
New Century Benefits handles our New Jersey Temporary Disability insurance for our members. This has been a proven cost-saving benefit for NJRHA members! Our program offers preferred rates by utilizing a pooled rating structure, which reduces your premium, provides rate stability and enhances the employee experience.
Association Health Care Coverage:
Through our partnership with the National Restaurant Association we offer health care options for both large and small employers. Our Association Health Care Trust with UnitedHealthcare Group allows our members to buy coverage for themselves and employees through a national program. UHG also offers an individual plan that you can offer to your employees at no cost to you. This provides your staff with the minimum essential coverage they are required to obtain.
Workman’s Compensation Coverage:
The MacLean Agency provides Workman’s Comp coverage exclusively for NJRHA members. They offer strong, competitive pricing from more than a dozen carriers & include up to 25% schedule credits, Pay-as-you-go options and back-end dividends of up to 40% (based on performance). There are more than 5 ways to save on your Workers Compensation.
State-mandated (as of 2023!) Employee Retirement Program:
The NJRHA has partnered with Alliant Retirement Services to provide retirement options to employees of the foodservice and hospitality industry through the NJRHA PEP 401K Plan! Members of the NJRHA can offer retirement options to employees for as little as $2,500 per year. Contact LeslieS@njrha.org for more information.
FREE ServSafe Food and Alcohol Training:
Available with us! Through a Grant award that the NJRHA receives from the NJ Department of Labor, we are able to offer NJRHA members ServSafe training and certification FREE. Please email Sarita Curry at saritac@njrha.org for more information or enroll online and click into the schedule & registration.
Legislative Events and ACTION:
The NJRHA hosts Town Halls and legislative roundtables where our members are able to meet their legislators and discuss topics that matter to them. We also host an Advocacy Day every year in Trenton, inviting our members to participate with us in our face-to-face meetings at the State House. We join the National Restaurant Association in Washington DC every April for the National Advocacy event where NJRHA members can lobby with us on Capitol Hill.
Networking:
At the NJRHA we forge connections that matter. Bringing Hospitality businesses together, along with the vendors who can offer you services and products that you need. Our staff works closely every day with other Associations and Chambers of Commerce to keep our own connections strong and amplify your voice even more through smart collaborations and coalitions. We also work with our national counterparts in every State so we ensure that you are armed with continuous awareness of challenges and issues happening in other states before they happen here in NJ.
Marketing:
The NJRHA promotes the Hospitality Industry throughout NJ with digital marketing campaigns, partnerships, social media promotions, email blasts and speaking engagements. We elevate the image of the industry and provide public information to help your customers understand what you do.
Workforce Development:
Through the NJ Restaurant Education Foundation, our 501c3 non-profit, we provide our Prostart educational curriculum to participating schools. With this program, teenagers have the opportunity to train and certify in culinary arts and management so they can pursue a career in the industry. NEW in 2022, the NJRHA has launched the First Start Apprenticeship Program which, through a grant from the Dept of Labor, we are able to help cover the wage costs for participating businesses to hire and train apprentices. With First Start Apprenticeship, our members have the opportunity to mold and shape their own future workforce!