Fast Food Workers Striking?!?!?

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I don't understand why this is over complicated.
Working in the fast food industry sucks. I think we can all agree to that.
I did it myself when I was in high school and it sucked.
So, instead of complaining about it, I bettered myself.
I couldn't afford college and my parents were not going to pay for it.
What is a boy to do?
I joined the Army.
The pay STILL sucked but, at least I got an education.
And, more importantly, I got the G.I. Bill.
I went to college while in the Army and, once I got out, I finished college.
Now, I make quite a bit more then I did flipping burgers but, if for some reason I feel I deserve more, I have two choices:
1: Ask for a raise
2: find another job.

Look, making minimum wage is impossible to live on alone. That is why there are roommates out there.
That is why some people work two jobs (I have done that too).
I don't feel sorry for minimum wage workers because they are working in a start up job.
Seriously, if they are unhappy with the pay, climb, scratch, fight, or run to get out of the job and into a better one.

And that's what they're doing.

Why do you feel that you're entitled to rights that they aren't?

They are not asking, they are demanding. that is the difference. He worked his *kitten* to improve, what are they people doing? They are saying pay me or else.

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And that's what they're doing.

Why do you feel that you're entitled to rights that they aren't?

Asking for a raise while refusing to work seems like the world's stupidest way to ask for a raise. Maybe crapping on their desk and defiling their household pets would make it worse...

did not read this thread really.

But has anyone actually seen a fast food restaurant that people are striking at?

seriously asking, cause i never have

Anyone who's upset because he can't get his Big Mac because the people who make it actually want a fair wage is a tool.

I work in an office and I make just under 15 dollars. I'm sorry but I really don't think that fast food workers should be making the same amount as me lol. Fast food is pretty much the lowest on the totem pole of jobs. There's no shame in working fast food, a job is a job...HOWEVER, fast food jobs have ALWAYS been a minimum wage job designed for teenagers and college students. I understand what it's like to struggle with money, but if you need more money, you need to try to find a better job, not demand more money from the job that you knew from the beginning didn't pay well!! The dumbest part about it all is that if they do indeed raise their pay, the price of everything is going to go up as well. In the end it won't make any difference lol.

A business can't pay a worker more money than they can produce. You can't arbitrarily pay somebody 15 dollars an hour when their job only produces 6 dollars an hour of value. If you do that for any extended period of time, the business will go out of business, then nobody makes any money at all (business, employees, suppliers, etc).

If you want a better job that pays better than "living wages" - get yourself some skills that are worth something to society. Flipping burgers is not a skill - sorry.

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Just to show how ignorant most of the people in this thread are of the very basics of labor actions such as strikes, McDonald's can't simply fire all these people. It would literally be illegal.

Now, by all means, continue this incredibly stupid "debate" full of BS and people who don't know a damn thing about economics, labor action, social stratification, etc.

you angry?

I am a little bit, yeah. I posted on my wall a little while ago that privilegd white folk who think they attained their position in society through nothing but their own darned hard work have joined people who don't vaccinate their kids on my list of people who make me unreasonably angry.

If their employment is "at will" that means that McDonalds can fire their employees for any reason and they can quit for any reason. Hence the "at will". It's not illegal. As far as I know there is no contractual agreement between McDonalds and their employees. THAT would make it illegal for McD's to decide to fire someone as it would be a breach of contract.

Says the girl who worked in Insurance for 13 years and provided Employment Practice Insurance to some of the largest companies in the US and has had to read handbooks and pretty much know the ins and outs of what is legal and what isn't.

So if an employee(s) intentionally skips their work shift could they be fired?

we need to go back to 14 hour work weeks, child labor, and insanely dangerous working conditions!

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Just to show how ignorant most of the people in this thread are of the very basics of labor actions such as strikes, McDonald's can't simply fire all these people. It would literally be illegal.

Now, by all means, continue this incredibly stupid "debate" full of BS and people who don't know a damn thing about economics, labor action, social stratification, etc.

you angry?

I am a little bit, yeah. I posted on my wall a little while ago that privilegd white folk who think they attained their position in society through nothing but their own darned hard work have joined people who don't vaccinate their kids on my list of people who make me unreasonably angry.

If their employment is "at will" that means that McDonalds can fire their employees for any reason and they can quit for any reason. Hence the "at will". It's not illegal. As far as I know there is no contractual agreement between McDonalds and their employees. THAT would make it illegal for McD's to decide to fire someone as it would be a breach of contract.

Says the girl who worked in Insurance for 13 years and provided Employment Practice Insurance to some of the largest companies in the US and has had to read handbooks and pretty much know the ins and outs of what is legal and what isn't.

So if an employee(s) intentionally skips their work shift could they be fired?

If you mean not show up for work? Yes.

I would be hard pressed to find an EPL insurance policy that covers collective bargaining agreements.

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So who has the next bad idea that would allow this giant company to pay people next to nothing? Because it's clearly very important to some of you that these people not earn a decent wage.

It isn't to me. I say more power to 'em. If they can convince the owners that they must pay a higher wage because it makes economic sense to do so, good for them. It means higher prices for consumers, but I can live with that

I'm not disagreeing. But those higher prices for consumers...these workers are part of that pool. So when prices go up, cost of living goes up. And then they need higher wages. It's a never ending spiral upward.

I don't understand why people don't understand this very simple concept lol.

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And that's what they're doing.

Why do you feel that you're entitled to rights that they aren't?

Asking for a raise while refusing to work seems like the world's stupidest way to ask for a raise. Maybe crapping on their desk and defiling their household pets would make it worse...

While it may seem stupid to you, it has shown to be effective throughout our history.

This is not the first time a labor force has gone on strike. Many of the employment perks we all enjoy today are because of striking employees demanding better conditions.

Or do you all think that corporations stopped hiring children to work in mines out of the kindness of their hearts?

I get it, and I agree with you on that point. It raised awareness for the plight of the children being forced to work in deplorable conditions, and it raised awareness about things like the disgusting practices in the slaughterhouses of 100 years ago and suchlike. I'm not opposed to collective bargaining. But I think it behooves us all to examine what they're asking for and decide if it's worth the higher prices we'll all have to pay as consumers. That's why I said earlier I'd rather pay higher prices as a consumer than have it forcibly taken from me, have some of the value siphoned off by a middle-man, and redistributed to the poor people who are then beholden to the bureacratic middle-men who are the gatekeepers to those resources. At least then I have the choice to buy or not buy the higher-priced product.