McDonald’s Employees To Protest For Wage Hike At Company Headquarters

Date: May 20, 2015

Protest Comes Ahead Of Shareholder Annual Meeting

Despite recent concessions to workers and labor interests with the announcement of an increase in starting pay to $1 more than minimum wage, McDonald’s continues to face pressure from employees and unions to increase minimum wages. On Wednesday, as many as 5,000 McDonald’s employees, led by the Service Employees International Union, were expected to begin marching outside of the restaurant’s headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois in a demand for a $15 minimum wage as well as the right for employees to unionize.

SEIU has been involved in a three-year campaign to boost wages for retail and service industry workers and is leading this week’s protests. Wednesday’s protest is similar to one SEIU staged in May 2014 in the same location that drew 2,000 people. Wednesday’s protest was set to start at noon and last for a few hours, closing roads in the city. A second, smaller protest is set for Thursday morning during the company’s shareholder meeting. The media, The Guardian (UK) notes, are barred from attending that meeting.

McDonald’s announcement last month of a pay increase is likely to put the average hourly rate for employees over $10 per hour by the end of 2016, Reuters notes. Those increases, however, would apply to 90,000 workers at 1,500 McDonald’s-operated restaurants across the US. There are roughly 660,000 additional restaurant workers who are technically employees of operators of McDonald’s 12,500 franchised restaurants in the US. The workers expected to protest Wednesday and Thursday are among those critical of the new plan, arguing it won’t significantly benefit employees.

What This Means For Small Businesses

Unions and pro-labor groups are increasingly targeting high-profile companies’ bottom lines, pressuring politicians and corporations alike to create burdensome new policies to increase wages. Other small businesses also headquartered in the Chicago area may also find themselves the target of growing pressure to boost wages from unions, employees, and politicians as the SEIU and its affiliates continue campaigning in Chicagoland.

Additional Reading

Reuters, the Pioneer Press (IL), and the Guardian (UK) are among the outlets covering the protests.

Related Content: Small Business News | Chicago, IL | Labor

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