McDonald's workers are holding massive protests over the chain's 'publicity stunt' pay raise

[ErikJ]

Source: Business Insider

McDonald's workers across the US are holding protests Thursday in response to the fast-food chain's decision to raise wages for only a fraction of its employees.

McDonald's announced Wednesday that it would be raising hourly pay by more than $1 for the employees who work at company-owned stores, or 10% of its total workforce.

Protesters say the pay raise is a "publicity stunt" because it doesn't apply to employees of franchised stores.

They are seeking an increase for all employees to at least $15 an hour. The average hourly wage for McDonald's workers is $9.01, according to the company.

McDonald's argues that the change still affects 90,000 workers.

Workers are protesting in two dozen cities Thursday, according to the Fight for $15 movement, a coalition of fast-food workers who have been campaigning for hourly wages of at least $15.

Protests are planned in cities including Atlanta, Boston, Denver, New York City, and Pittsburgh.





Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/mcdonalds-employees-protest-pay-raise-2015-4#ixzz3WBdMHNeR

[Demeter]

1. Solidarity!!

[Igel]

5. Yeah.

Solidarity's fine and good. I limit my solidarity to things that are reasonable.

But for many of those particular protesters, they're just showing why they work at McDonald's and not at Dewey, Cheatham, and Steele (LLC) or Pyle, Deeper, & Hier, engineering consultants.

[F4lconF16]

7. And this is why we fail, again and again.

Screw you.

SOLIDARITY FOREVER AND ALWAYS.

Not when you feel like it. This is exactly why workers continue to be oppressed--because your solidarity doesn't apply to the people who really need it. This is a fantastic development, these workers are brave and fight a massive international corporation at risk of life and limb, and you withhold your solidarity?

Yeah, screw you.

Solidarity doesn't come when you feel like it--it comes for all workers everywhere. We support them because by doing so we support ourselves, and the advancement of humanity everywhere.

Screw you.

Edit to say that I really don't care if the corporation has power of the franchisees--you know that if they wanted to raise the wage, they could. Either way, withholding your solidarity is a pretty messed up thing.

[sendero]

2. I understand their frustration...

... but do they think McDonald's actually has the legal right to force franchisees to pay a certain wage? Sounds like it would be out of the scope of most franchise agreements.

[ghostsinthemachine]

3. well that's all and good BUT

McDonalds cannot make franchisees give raises. Even mandating from Corporate to franchisee would change a lot of agreements and contracts. Some franchises could file suit because of that change alone. Franchising demands that what you buy is what you get and changing an agreement would be very messy and some would sue over it. And that is a FTCviolation. With huge fines and losing the ability to further franchise.

[Romeo.lima333]

4. no good deed goes unpunished

[Xithras]

6. McDonalds signs 20 year franchise licenses with restaraunts.

If the franchise agreements don't give McDonald's the authority to determine minimum wage levels, then McDonald's is powerless to mandate anything. If they tried to mandate it, the franchisees would just sue and McDonalds would be laughed out of court. The franchise agreement is a contract between the restaurant owner and McDonalds, and specified exactly what each of them can, and cannot, do.

McDonald's could (and should) amend all of its NEW franchise agreements to give it the power to set a new minimum wage level. When the franchise agreements for the existing restaurants run out, the company could require the owners to accede to the new requirements as a term of its renewal. Problem is, there are new restaurants being built every day, so some wouldn't fall under the authority of an expanded agreement for another 20 years. Still, it would be a move in the right direction.

[DeSwiss]

8. I want the workers to have a decent income. Healthcare. A nice life.

- Just if they wouldn't sell the food....

Ammonium Sulfate
Ammonium sulfate is used to fertilize soil and kill bugs. It’s also in the buns at McDonalds.

Silcone Oil
Chicken McNuggets have been shown in labs to contain dimethylpolysiloxane, or silicone oil. Silicone oil is used to produce contact lenses and other medical devices.

Cystein-L
Cystein-L is an amino acid that is synthesized from duck feathers. It helps to flavor the meat, bread, and pastries.

THBQ (tertiary butylhydroquinone)
The FDA has evaluated TBHQ and determined that it is safe to consume at the concentration allowed in foods and sets an upper limit of 0.02% of the oil or fat content in foods. At very high doses, it has some negative health effects on lab animals, such as producing precursors to stomach tumors and damage to DNA.

Propylene Glycol
This is a chemical found in antifreeze, e-cigarettes, and McDonalds burgers.

Dimethylpolysiloxane
Almost every fried fast food item at McDonalds contains this chemical, and so does silly putty, caulking, shampoos, heat resistant tiles, and contact lenses.

Carminic Acid
The carminic acid in the meat at McDonalds is synthesized from components of the Chochineal beetle.

Cellulose
Pretty much every fast food item contains this compound derived from wood pulp.

Bon apetite.