Fast food workers are on strike across the country once again, seeking $15 an hour and the right to join a union. This time, two years after the historic first one-day strike by New York City fast food workers, similar actions were expected in
190 cities. The movement has spurred significant minimum wage victories in some cities and states, and it has developed its own leaders. One of those, Terrance Wise, is profiled by Steven Greenhouse in the
New York Times, making clear that
workers know the stakes of their fight:
“I have never seen a movement like this,” said Mr. Wise, in his crisp tenor voice. “We’ve seen how the civil rights movement won civil rights and we’ve seen how women won the right to vote. Those things weren’t given to us. People faced hoses and beatings.
“Some people even died. We have to bring the same pressure for today’s times and make the companies listen to us. We have to do whatever it takes to win.”
The fast food workers' fight is spreading, becoming a movement beyond just the one industry.
Airport workers,
home care workers, and
convenience store workers were joining the fast food workers in some cities, recognizing a common cause among low-wage workers across industries. And why not? It's not just fast food employers that pay poverty wages, give workers too few hours and unpredictable schedules, and intimidate or retaliate against those who speak out.
Striking workers remain a minority in their industries, but their numbers are growing. They're going up against a huge industry—now, up against more than one huge industry—but they haven't been crushed and, after two years, they've shown that they are in this fight for the long haul.
