Fast food workers in 15 cities across the country will walk away on Friday in a strike for the federal government to raise the national minimum wage to $ 15 an hour.
The strike is being organized by Fight for $ 15 and a union.
“Fast food workers will go on strike on January 15, on what would be MLK’s 92nd birthday, to demand $ 15 / hour and the right to unionize! Employees will not flinch until everyone has made at least $ 15! Fight for $ 15 Tweeted.
Fast food workers will go on strike on January 15, on what would be MLK’s 92nd birthday, to demand $ 15 / hour and the right to unionize! Employees will not flinch until everyone has made at least $ 15! # FightFor15 https://t.co/pPgSODMEph pic.twitter.com/c7a5rxkvHg
– Fight for 15 (@ fightfor15) January 13, 2021
The group, which is supported by Service Employees International Union, has a petition on its website urging of the president-elect Joe BidenJoe Biden Confirmation Hearing for Biden’s DNI Pick Postponed Biden’s Sunday Inauguration Rehearsal Postponed Due to Security Concerns: Murkowski Report Says It Would Be “ Appropriate ” to Prevent Trump from Staying in Office Again. and vice president-elect Kamala Harris
Kamala HarrisBiden calls for swift action, outlines .9 trillion virus relief package Porter loses seat on House panel overseeing finance industry The Hill’s 12:30 Report: Trump’s Growing Isolation As Administration Closes MORE to prioritize the minimum wage in their first 100 days in office.
The petition demands a federal minimum wage of $ 15, simpler rules for union membership, a focus on racial justice, affordable health care and holding companies responsible for “their inability to protect vital workers on the front lines of the pandemic. “
“They want to send a message to both the Biden-Harris administration and Congress to prioritize passing $ 15 an hour (legislation) in the first 100 days,” said Allynn Umel, organizing director of Fight for $ 15 and a Union, told USA Today.
Some of the strikes will take place on Zoom or in caravans.
“I make just $ 10 an hour working at McDonald’s in Memphis, and it’s nowhere near enough to provide for me and my daughter’s basic needs every month,” a McDonald’s employee said on Friday. wrote in an opinion piece for Business Insider.
Many argue that an increase to a $ 15 minimum wage could hurt small businesses, especially during the pandemic, when they are already struggling. There are some states that plan to raise their minimum wages in 2021.