U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) and SEIU International President Mary Kay Henry were among 54 arrested at McDonald’s headquarters last week as hundreds of striking cooks and cashiers flooded downtown Chicago demanding union rights in the $200 billion fast-food industry. The walkout in Chicago came as thousands of fast-food workers in 2018 battleground states across the country went on strike calling for union rights one month before Election Day.
“If Amazon can pay $15 an hour then companies like McDonald’s making billions in profits can afford to pay $15 and respect our right to a union too,” said McDonald’ employee Adriana Alvarez.
Candidates and elected leaders also vowed their support for cooks and cashiers striking in battleground states across the country including Florida, Georgia, California and Connecticut, stressing the importance of growing unions and making it easier for workers to organize.
As fast-food cooks and cashiers went on strike Thursday, working people from across the service economy joined the uprising, including in key 2018 battlegrounds. Higher education workers at Miami Dade College – Florida’s largest college – and child care workers across California rallied Thursday, while hospital workers at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center walked off the job to protest efforts by powerful employers to undercut unions. Read more and see social media and video from the day here.
