Fight For $15 Protests Target McDonalds, United Airlines Shareholders – CBS Chicago

May 24, 2017 11:36 AM

CHICAGO (CBS) The Fight for $15 movement took aim at shareholders meetings for two Chicago area corporate giants on Wednesday McDonalds and United Airlines as low-pay workers continued their push for a higher minimum wage.

Hundreds of McDonalds workers and other activists marched outside the fast food giants corporate headquarters in Oak Brook as shareholders held their annual meeting. Protesters began gathering outside McDonalds headquarters around 7 a.m., and staged a boisterous protest as they chanted and marched outside the corporate campus.

Police shut down Jorie Boulevard for several hours to accommodate the protesters, who were marching as part of the Fight for $15 movement.

Activists said McDonalds, the worlds second largest private employer, fails to pay a living wage.

McDonalds workers demanded union rights and a $15-an-hour minimum wage.

Were tired of living in poverty. Meanwhile, they get to build a new headquarters in downtown Chicago, which Im pretty sure is pretty expensive; and we cant even afford to buy our children they toy that they want, or put food on the table, and that is absolutely unacceptable, Adriana Alvarez said.

McDonalds employee Betty Douglas said working for the fast food giant is like modern-day slavery.

It doesnt make any sense. We deserve dignity. We deserve $15 an hour. We deserve to be able to take care of our kids. My son, I cant even buy him any shoes, she said.

Protest organizers said, since the Fight for $15 movement launched nearly five years ago, more than 20 million low-wage workers have received pay raises.

However, they said McDonalds hasnt done enough, and essentially is exploiting its front-line workforce while executives line their pockets.

In response to Wednesdays protest, McDonalds issued the following statement:

Our commitment to the communities we serve includes providing opportunities for those who work in our restaurants to succeed at McDonalds and beyond. For hundreds of thousands, a job at McDonalds is their very first and our world-class training and education programs begin building the skills first time workers will need to succeed in the workforce. In recent years, we have raised pay and started offering paid time off at our company-owned restaurants. Additionally, eligible employees (at both company-owned and participating franchised restaurants) can take free high school completion classes, get upfront college tuition assistance and learn English as a second language. In just two years, we are proud that over 17,000 employees have participated in this extended learning. Together, these important investments in our people show why we are committed to being Americas best first job.

There were no incidents during the protest, and no demonstrators tried to cross police lines to get onto the McDonalds headquarters campus.

Fight for $15 protesters also sought to send a message to United Airlines at the companys shareholder meeting at Willis Tower on Wednesday.

Airport workers including baggage handlers, janitors, and security officers were joined by leaders of the Service Employees International Union, which has been trying to unionize the employees of subcontractors hired by the airlines.

OHare workers are coming together with other airport workers from major cities across the country, all fighting for a better life by sticking together and speaking out, SEIU Local 1 President Tom Balanoff said.

The workers claim contractors hired by United undercut jobs at OHare, and undermine safety and security.

We understand this is an important issue being raised in cities and states across the country. At United, we hold our vendors to the highest standards and require them to follow all applicable laws and regulations. Since we do not have a direct employer-employee relationship with our vendors employees, we must rely on them to work with each other directly, United spokeswoman Megan McCarthy said in an email.

SEIU officials said 30 airport workers and supporters were arrested at the United Airlines protest, including Balanoff. Police issued citations for blocking traffic.

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Fight For $15 Protests Target McDonalds, United Airlines Shareholders - CBS Chicago