Facebook has been banned by the city of Mountain View, California, from offering free lunch to its 2000 employees who will be working at its location. The reason: when employees stay in and eat lunch, they don't go out and give business to local restaurants and other businesses and help the local economy. Google, located in Mountain View, hired its first chef over 20 years ago and set the bar for feeding employees. Other companies soon followed to be competitive. The city ordinance was passed in 2014 when Facebook announced its building project in Mountain View. The new rule was largely enacted in response to the city's largest employer, Google, providing those free meals. Under the rule, Facebook (and other companies moving to Mountain View) can subsidize up to 50% of the cost of employee meals at an in-house eatery and fully subsidized meals and restaurants open to the public.

1. Why do businesses offer free lunches as a corporate benefit?

2. What is a business's responsibility to its local community?

3. How do you think not being able to have a free gourmet cafeteria (such as the one at Google) will affect Facebook and hiring and retaining employees for this location?

4. What advice would you give Mark Zuckerberg about how to address this new rule?