USA Today: As many as 2,000 protesters will gather outside of McDonald's headquarters

USA Today reports:

"On Wednesday, as many as 2,000 protesters from across the country will gather outside of McDonald's headquarters in Oak Brook, Ill., to call for worker wages of $15 an hour and the right to form a union without retaliation....
 A McDonald's worker with six children who says that she's been on food stamps for the 10 years that she's worked at McDonald's, says she's taking a bus to Chicago with other protesters from Kansas City, Mo. "They're making billions ... but we sweep their floors; take out their trash and service their customers," says Melinda Topel, 43, who typically works at the drive-thru cash register. "We don't deserve to live in poverty and to worry about our lights being cut off....One PR consultant suggests that CEO Thompson won't be able to ignore the wage issue."
 http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/05/20/mcdonalds-protesters-annual-meeting-better-wages/9325391/

                                                                 (Photo: EMMANUEL DUNAND, AFP/Getty Images)

Last week, Labor Power Blog reported on a one of the dozens of demonstrations across the world demanding a raise to $15.00 per hour and union representation.

"We can't pay our bills. We can't pay our rent. We must be a part of the 99%"

http://take10charles.blogspot.com/2014/05/we-cant-pay-our-bills-we-cant-pay-our.html

The protest and struggle continues to the point of being reported by the major national daily newspaper, USA Today

The movement for $15.00 per hour is part of the larger current effort  to raise the minimum wage as reported on by Labor Power here :

"Change from the Bottom Up :Minimum Wage Hike Petition in Michigan"

http://take10charles.blogspot.com/2014/05/change-from-bottom-up-minimum.html
                                                       

                                   FOLLOW UP , EXTRA, EXTRA, READ ALL ABOUT IT !
Dear MoveOn member,

McDonald's workers were just arrested outside of corporate headquarters for demanding decent wages and a voice on the job.

One of these workers is Adriana Alvarez, a McDonald's employee who's being paid $9.15 per hour. A mother of a two year-old-son, she's fighting for $15 an hour so she can raise her family.

She was just arrested outside of McDonald's corporate headquarters in Oak Brook, IL, where hundreds of workers are protesting their poverty wages and working conditions on the day before the company's annual shareholder meeting.

She needs our help. Can you call McDonald's right now and tell them you stand with Adriana and the other workers?

Here's the number to call: (855) 572-9499

You will then be connected to one of McDonald's offices around the country. Tell them: "I stand with the arrested workers calling for $15 an hour and the right to form a union without fear of retaliation."

Then, please report your call so that we can track McDonald's response by clicking here: http://pol.moveon.org/call?cp_id=2087&tg=925.

This is not attention that McDonald's executives want. In fact, the company's last annual report acknowledged that worker strikes and their support from the public are pressuring them to raise wages.1 As McDonald's corporate brass heads into tomorrow's shareholder meeting, we can rattle them by flooding their offices with thousands of calls today—putting them on notice and under the glare of a bright spotlight as they discuss McDonald's future.
Adriana isn't the only one counting on us. Her McDonald's coworkers were also arrested for their brave act of civil disobedience. They were standing up for themselves, the families counting on them to be breadwinners, and pretty much every fast food worker everywhere.

Please show your support for these courageous workers by calling McDonald's offices right now: (855) 572-9499.

Tell them that you support these workers. Tell them that it's shameful that people who work for a living have to be arrested in order to be heard. Tell them that it's time for a $15-an-hour wage and the right to form a union without retaliation.

If you get a voicemail prompt when you call, it's because thousands of other people are also calling and McDonald's is being overwhelmed by support for the workers. Leaving a voice message is helpful too!

Just to be extra clear: the workers already risked their livelihoods by going on strike last week in the biggest fast food action in history.2 With the McDonald's shareholder meeting starting in less than 24 hours, we have to make sure they hear us. No one who works for a living should be forced to live in poverty. No one who works for a corporation that makes more than $5 billion in profit annually should have hungry kids at home.3

Your turn. Can you pick up the phone and call McDonald's right now?

Here's where to call:

McDonald's Offices
Phone: (855) 572-9499

Then, please report your call by clicking here:

http://pol.moveon.org/call?cp_id=2087&tg=925&id=96030-19054604-7XIvDJx&t=2

Thanks for all you do.

–Victoria, Nick, Manny, Corinne, and the rest of the team

P.S. For a video series about Adriana and her fight for $15 an hour, check this out: http://fastfoodglobal.org/main/adrianas-fight-for-15/.

Sources:

1. "McDonald's to SEC: Strikes hurt, and we might have to hike pay," Salon, March 4, 2014
http://www.moveon.org/r/?r=298377&id=96030-19054604-7XIvDJx&t=3

2. "It's On: The Biggest Fast Food Strike in World History Has Started," Vice, May 15, 2014
http://www.moveon.org/r/?r=298369&id=96030-19054604-7XIvDJx&t=4

3. "McDonald's Corp," CNN Money, accessed May 21, 2013
http://www.moveon.org/r/?r=298371&id=96030-19054604-7XIvDJx&t=5

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