Seattle Fast Food Workers Vote to Strike

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

SEATTLE FAST FOOD WORKERS VOTE TO STRIKE

Thursday action part of global day of protest against low wages

SEATTLE – Fast food workers in Seattle today announced their plans to join a global fast-food strike planned for Thursday, May 15.

The workers voted Tuesday to take the strike action, part of a continuing movement to pressure giant corporations to raise wages and lift workers out of poverty.

Seattle fast-food workers previously have gone on strike on May 30 and Aug. 29, 2013.

Workers plan to rally at 4 p.m. on Thursday, May 15 at Westlake Park in Seattle. Strike locations and further details to be announced later.

Media Contact: Sejal Parikh, sejal@workingwa.org

$15 for Seattle - April 23, 2014

Support our families. Afford to survive. Live on our own. Pay the bills. That’s what workers need: a $15 minimum wage so everyone can support themselves, afford the basics, and contribute to the economy.

Join us April 23rd at City Hall to show how strongly our community supports $15 for Seattle.

We’ll gather on the 4th Avenue side of City Hall at 4 pm. First we’ll form a giant “15” on the City Hall plaza, and then spread out to surround the entire block with signs that show all the reasons we need $15 for Seattle — how broad the support for $15 is.

Wednesday, April 23, 2014 Seattle City Hall 600 4th Avenue Gather at 4:00 pm

Show you support $15!

Seattle is standing up for a $15 minimum wage and now you can show your support right from home! Click right here, fill out your address and we will mail you a snazzy "$15 for Seattle" window sign.

15 for Seattle Word Cloud WebgraphicNeed a reminder why we are fighting for $15 in Seattle? Check out a few of the workers' stories below.


Kyle, McDonald's "I'm a father of a 6 month old baby. I'm trying to help care for my girlfriend and our daughter, but I can’t do that on minimum wage. I don't have a car so I ride the bus back and forth everyday, taking a bus on a two hour ride to visit them in Tumwater where they are. We are trying to find a place on our own right now but it's hard on what they pay us. My life would be dramatically changed if I could afford a car, a place of our own and $15 would help get me there. 

Crystal, Domino's "I've been working at Domino's for five years and still make minimum wage. A raise to $15 an hour would help me and my son raise ourselves out of poverty. I’m a single mother. I live in a bad neighborhood and I’m trying to get out. I want to get out but it’s a struggle — it’s hard to get out on this minimum wage. I want to go back to school but right now I'm living check to check. I get food stamps and child care subsidies but it's a constant day to day struggle. I don’t know how many hours I am going to get each week, sometimes up, sometimes down. I love my job, I like to work, I just wish it would pay a little more."

Luis, McDonald's "I work at the McDonald’s on Madison and it’s not possible to survive on minimum wage. I’m supporting three granddaughters because their father died. I’m taking care of them, but it is not easy to maintain a decent lifestyle for them. It’s really hard to live on minimum wage. If I was making $15 an hour they would be able to pursue a better career and wouldn’t have to only worry about their current living situation."