A crazy idea might be to start with better evaluation of potential franchisees. The ones in my area are a comedy of poor management and apathetic employees.
It's hard not to be apathetic when your job description has become so stigmatized that it is synonymous with failure ("go get a job at McDonald's"). A math teacher at my old highschool used to hand back McDonald's applications for employment with failed tests.
When I see a resume with a "McJob", I'm impressed. It shows me they will work.
My best Unix/FreeBSD admin came out of a crappy Verizon customer support job - he's been eager to learn, works hard, is appreciative and is really nice to be around.
Same. 14. And Taco Bell. Even at a time in my life when I had no major life pressures, there wasn't much about the place to bring out the enthusiasm in me.