McDonald’s workers strike again

Submitted by SJW on 1 May, 2018 - 10:13 Author: Charlotte Zalens

Workers at five McDonald′s restaurants (Crayford, Cambridge, Manchester, and two restaurants in Watford) struck on Tuesday 1 May as Solidarity went to press.

Workers are on strike for £10 an hour, an end to the youth rates, an end to zero hour contracts, for a choice of fixed hour contracts, for union recognition, and an end to bullying in the workplace.

Workers at the McDonald′s in Manchester walked out at midnight and were greeted by a crowd of supporters. They also picketed for an hour between 7-8am to make before work customers aware of the strike.

Workers in Crayford and Cambridge picketed their stores in the morning before joining strikers in Watford for a lunchtime rally in Watford, the home town of McDonald′s global CEO Steve Easterbrook.

The strike is the first one since the historic first UK McDonald′s strike in September last year. Since then Bakers′ Food and Allied Workers′ Union members have been organising to build the strike in new stores, and the strike has grown from two stores to five.

McDonald′s striker from Watford, Richard, said: ″It’s true the strike has had an impact in the wider labour movement. It helps that we’ve had the support of people like McDonnell and Corbyn, and Laura Pidcock MP (a former McDonald’s worker). That has had a big impact, particularly in popularising it. Two years ago talking about a strike in McDonald’s would have been impossible, but this shows it can be done.″

The McStrike should act as an inspiration to other workers to organise, and for unions to take seriously organising workers in these industries.

• Read an interview with a McDonald’s striker online at: bit.ly/2vJnPp0

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