Yesterday fast-food restaurant workers across the US staged a 24-hour strike in protest against low wages. Walkouts were reported in New York, Chicago, Washington DC, and also Detroit, Michigan; Raleigh, North Carolina; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Organisers hoped workers in as many as 100 cities would participate in what is the latest in a series of such actions. Unions want a $15-an-hour (£9.19) federal minimum wage. The current one, set in 2009, is $7.25 per hour.
President Barack Obama, who has backed a Senate measure to increase the minimum to $10.10, specifically mentioned fast-food workers “who work their tails off and are still living at or barely above poverty”, in an economic policy speech on Wednesday.
His Democratic allies, who control the upper chamber of Congress, have said a vote on the matter could be held this month. But even if it passes the Senate, it is not clear if it would be approved by the Republican-led House of Representatives.
Nearly 100 protestors gathered around a Wendy’s restaurant in Brooklyn, New York, at midday, carrying signs saying “stick together for $15/hr”. Shaquena Davis told the BBC she worked at the fast-food restaurant, making $7.25. “I got kicked out of school because I couldn’t pay the bill,” she said. “I’m living in a one-bedroom apartment with five people.”
Kachelle Krump, 23, works at a Burger King in the area. She told the BBC she works 16 to 20 hours a week and would like more hours, but that management had been unhelpful. “I have a child who is seven years old – she’s in school, she needs things,” said Ms Krump. Of her employer, Burger King, she said: “It’s a billion dollar company. Share a little.”
In Detroit, about 50 demonstrators turned out for an early morning rally in front of a McDonald’s, including a handful of employees who walked off the job. However, the restaurant stayed open. Another 40 demonstrators rallied at a Burger King in Atlanta.
The American fast-food industry has come under increasing scrutiny because part-time jobs, including retail and food positions, have made up most of the job growth since the recession. It is not yet clear how many fast-food restaurants will be affected by Thursday’s industrial action.
The workers’ last nationwide strike, in August, was patchy, with some restaurants appearing to function normally while others were unable to do business.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-25239433
Press release from the Bakers’, Food & Allied Workers Union
BFAWU has agreed to work with Unite the Resistance and John McDonnell MP, along with other groups at a meeting on 8 January 2014 in order to discuss and hopefully address the lack of fairness and justice for workers in the UK’s fast-food industry.
Recent announcements from these hugely profitable companies regarding their use of unpaid labour and their abundant use of zero hours contracts seem to have gone largely unnoticed in the mainstream media. It would appear that forcing workers into poverty and having them rely on benefits to pay for basics such as rent and food is quite acceptable in David Cameron’s ‘big society’ Britain. Well it isn’t.
We are calling on all of these massive, global fast-food companies to stop this shameful exploitation and instead, ensure that their employees are provided with proper contracts of employment with wages that mean they don’t have to depend on state handouts in order to exist. It is frightful that we even have to make this demand in the 21st century.
It is equally appalling that companies are making vast profits and awarding their senior management with massive pay increases and bonuses, while those on the front line and in the engine room are paid a pittance, are unable to plan ahead and are given absolutely no long-term job security whatsoever.
The bottom line is that these companies have the ability and the finances to pay trainees and provide secure employment. They should be doing so without question.
The much debated and oft-quoted ‘cost of living crisis’ isn’t the fault of ordinary working people. It isn’t the fault of teachers and nurses, nor is it the fault of firemen. It certainly isn’t the fault of disabled and unemployed people and it definitely isn’t the fault of people working in the food industry.
The blame lies exclusively with irresponsible and greedy bankers, gambling away people’s futures in an unregulated financial sector. The irony is that whereas many of those responsible should be stood in the dock facing charges of misappropriation, they have gone unpunished and have in fact, continued to prosper following bailouts from the UK taxpayer.
To add insult to injury, our political classes have ensured that those ‘with the broadest shoulders’ have been able to protect and in many cases, add to their wealth whilst those who had no hand whatsoever in the crisis are having to deal with the impact of the recession head-on by way of pay cuts, pay freezes, redundancy and the systematic erosion of employment rights, all in the name of ‘economic necessity’.
Companies of course, many of which operate in the food industry have jumped on the bandwagon with lip-licking relish.
Trade Unions were formed to ensure that groups of workers were able to challenge unfairness and exploitation collectively; providing individuals with the strength and support of others in their time of need.
So if you work in the fast food industry; if you have a member of your family working in the fast food industry; if you are having to work on a zero hour contract; if you are unemployed and are being forced to provide free labour as part of the government’s ‘workfare’ scheme, contact the BFAWU and tell us of your experience. Let us help you change your life and the lives of those you work with.
Together, we have strength in unity.
Ian Hodson
National President of the Bakers’, Food & Allied Workers Union
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 16
- 17
- 18