Fast-food strike, day of wage actions Dec. 4

The following is from Working Washington:

UPDATE (Dec. 4, 2014) — Thousands of fast food workers in 190-plus U.S. cities will strike TODAY for $15 and the right to organize — including here in Washington state, where workers will strike and rally for $15 in Bellevue, Kent, Aberdeen, and Olympia. Airport workers, homecare workers, and other poverty wage workers will be joining in support, adding their voices as the fight for $15 builds still more momentum.

Here is a list of strikes and demonstrations for $15, which will culminate in today’s 4 p.m. strike support rally at the State Capitol to call for an increase in the state minimum wage. All are invited to come and show your support for $15:

6 a.m. — Bellevue: 1900 148th Ave NE (Jack-in-the-Box) See photo above. More pics at #strikepoverty.
11 a.m. — Aberdeen: 909 E Wishkah St (McDonald’s)
Noon — Kent: 10715 SE 240th, Kent (McDonald’s/Chevron)
1:30 p.m. — State House: Labor Committee hearing on minimum wage, Hearing Room D, John L O’Brien Building
4 p.m. — Capitol Building: Rally begins (gather at 3:30 p.m.). Speakers will include striking fast food workers, airport worker, and homecare worker, all united in the call for $15/hour and the right to organize.
5 p.m. — Olympia (Capitol Mall): 2400 Capitol Mall Dr SW (Olive Garden)

OLYMPIA (Dec. 1, 2014) — Poverty-wage workers will lead a rally for higher pay at the State Capitol on Thursday, Dec. 4 — the same day the State House Committee on Labor & Workforce Development holds a pre-session hearing on minimum wage. No matter where you work or where you live in our state, you can’t support yourself when you’re working for nine dollars and change. And you can’t grow an economy on poverty wages, either.

That’s why the crisis of poverty-wage jobs likely to become one of the key issues in state politics next year — after all, no elected official can afford to ignore an issue that’s backed by two-thirds of voters.

TAKE A STAND! Join poverty-wage workers unable to support themselves on the state minimum wage of $9 and change, along with community supporters and elected officials as they rally at the State Capitol to raise pay and raise up Washington’s economy on Thursday, Dec. 4. Workers and supporters will gather at 3:30 p.m. with a program scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. You can RSVP at the rally’s Facebook event page.

You can also send messages of support for workers via Twitter or e-mail and we’ll bring your support right to the strike lines. How? We’re bringing a screen with us and slapping it up on a sign so we can broadcast your messages. Tweet a message on the hashtag #strikepoverty — or just send us your message — and we’ll bring you with us!

Support for higher wages is spreading well beyond SeaTac and Seattle. In Bellevue, workers went on strike in September, calling for the giant fast food chains to pay $15/hour and respect workers right to organize. In Olympia, City Council held a hearing on raising the minimum wage, and community leaders are signing on in support. In Tacoma, a grassroots petition for higher pay has already gathered thousands of signatures. In Kent, Issaquah, Bothell, and beyond, supporters have sparked community conversations with letters to the editor calling for higher wages.

More information

• New research shows that U.S. household incomes declined from 2010 – 2012 — except for the richest few.
• It takes a full-time job paying $14.81/hour in order to afford a 1-bedroom apartment in Washington state, according to research by the National Low Income Housing Coalition — and $18.65/hour for a 2-bedroom.
• Eight of the 10 fastest-growing jobs in our economy pay poverty wages of less than $15/hour.
• While 14% of Washington residents have incomes below the federal poverty level, there are more than 5,800 people in our state with annual incomes above $1 million.

Click here for more information about the Dec. 4 rally.