Fight for Social Justice: Fair Wages

Fight for Social Justice: Fair Wages

              One similarity that black and latino communities have in common is the fight for social justice in particular the fight for better salaries. One organization that has come to the forefront in this fight is Fight for 15 with the hashtags #Fightfor15, #strikefastfood, and #livingwage. Much of the Fight For 15 movements membership are blacks and latinos, single mothers of all races, and senior citizens that have been forced to go back to work.


             According to their website’s about page (http://fightfor15.org/en/about-us/) the Fight for 15 was started by the Workers Organizing Committee of Chicago, Illinois as a grassroots movement that was in November of 2012 to fight for a better living wage of $15 per hour for fast food workers.


              Their plight has grown national to cities across the United States from coast to coast from Los Angles to Boston and New York City. Much of their fight is aimed at the major corporate chain restaurants, i.e. McDonalds, Burger King, Dunkin Donuts, Pizza Hut and a like. Companies that are making billions of dollars and could afford to increase the wages of its workers.


              Fight for 15 offers some interesting facts: the average fast food worker is 28 years old, 78% of them are the main wage earner in their families, 52% of them are on public assistance, 26% of the are parents. This insight provides ample data for the need for a wage increase to $15 per hour.

               
            Much of the faces that have come to represent these facts on their website are that of blacks and latinos. For example one voice for the movement is that of a black Burger King employee Dwayne Mitchell. He states, “I’m the sole provider of the household and can’t manage with a $8.25/hour wage. I’m not using government programs, which only makes it more stressful to sustain my 2 daughters, siblings, mom and grandmother. I feel that given how hard we are worked, fast food workers deserve to show something for it. With $15 I could finish college and become an example for my children.” Another voice is Guadalupe Vazquez who works at McDonald’s. She states “I’m fighting for 15 because the wage they pay me is not enough to pay rent and buy the things my children need.”

           
               As of September 1st, 2014 the United States Department of Labor website reports (http://www.dol.gov/whd/minwage/america.htm) that there are no states presently that offer a minimum wage rate over $10 per hour. Washington State comes the closet with minimum wage rate of $9.32 per hour and lowest minimum wage rate being in Wyoming with $ 5.15 per hour. As of 2009 the federal minimum wage rate has been 7.25 per hour. How the hell is Wyoming getting away with a minimum wage rate of $5.15 per hour is beyond me to understand? They also report that the average fast food worker makes about $9 per hour. But keep mind that the average fast food employee works part time.


            The fast food industry’s answer to the demands for $15 per hour was explained by Stephen Caldeira President of the International Franchise Association in a CBS News report, where he said “A higher main wage is ultimately going to mean higher prices for consumers, less money for franchises and ultimately loss jobs for the people that need them the most.”


              This has been a long running excuses for not paying people a decent wage I find it hard to believe since these large fast food companies are multimillion-dollar conglomerates that can spend money on million dollar advertising campaigns, pay their executives large salaries and the like but not invest in their work force that helps them to make so much money.