Minnesota fast food workers take part in nationwide strike

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.workdayminnesota.org/articles/minnesota-fast-food-workers-take-part-nationwide-strike

By Barb Kucera, Workday Minnesota September 4, 2014

MINNEAPOLIS
Workers at McDonald’s, Subway and other fast food restaurants in the Twin Cities joined a nationwide strike Thursday for $15 an hour and the right to form a union.

At 6 a.m., about a dozen strikers and scores of supporters marched to the McDonald’s at 1440 Stinson Blvd., Minneapolis, filling the restaurant. Two strikers spoke to the crowd, which then moved outside to hear from several elected officials, including Congressman Keith Ellison.

“A lot of us work really hard . . . and we don’t get paid enough,” said Washington Griffin, a McDonald’s employee.


Workers marched from a nearby parking lot to the McDonald's in northeast Minneapolis. Workday Minnesota photo

Added Eneida Jaimes, also a McDonald’s worker: “I am fighting for my daughters’ futures. I want them to be able to go to college and for that I need to be paid more than poverty wages.”

Median pay across the United States for front-line fast-food jobs is $8.69 an hour, with many jobs paying at or near the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, according to a 2013 report by the University of California-Berkeley Labor Center.

FULL story at link and more photos.

Published on Sep 4, 2014
http://www.workdayminnesot.org http://ctul.net/
Striking fast food workers and supporters rallied at a McDonald's in Minneapolis as part of a day of strikes in 150 cities across the United States on September 4, 2014. Striking workers, supported by Centro de Trabajadores Unido en Lucha - Center of Workers United in Struggle (CTUL) and other allies, are seeking union recognition and a $15/hour living wage.

[shenmue]

1. Go workers!

So many people's quality of life would improve with higher wages. These multinational corporations can afford it.