The McDonald's workers strike, explained

Fast-food workers across 15 U.S. cities are on strike demanding higher wages and better working conditions.

Transcript

00:00We work, we sweat, put 15 on our job. We work, we sweat, put 15 on our track.

00:18McDonald's, you say that we are essential. You say that we are the workers.

00:23You have millions and millions of workers out here today backing us.

00:27We're going to steady come out here until you get it.

00:30We shouldn't have to be scared when we go to work.

00:33We shouldn't have to worry that we're going to be made uncomfortable and our personal space is going to be violated.

00:40Nobody deserves that.

00:42I worked in the food industry and it is one of the most difficult but essential industries in the United States.

01:00We are nothing without food workers, period.

01:03We cannot feed our families without food workers, our economy and our lives.

01:42We know that the United States Congress is not being tricked or duped into thinking that they have raised all their wages to 15.

01:48And we will not stop adding pressure until they listen to their workers and actually fulfill the demands that you all are asking for.

01:56We should not have to work, work, check, to work, check. We should not have to live in poverty.

02:01The rich is getting rich and we're getting poor and they don't seem to understand that.

02:06McDonald's is waiting for, you're waiting for Washington, D.C. to do something and you can do something today.

02:12Now you have workers where the pandemic hit and they have to stay at home because now they're teachers of their children.

02:38And they have to stay home to make sure their kids are graduating for school.

02:43It's hard as a mom as it is.

02:46And also have to go in a corporation where your boss doesn't respect you and you're getting retaliated against.

02:52That's not right.

02:54We're just asking to be respected, racial justice, $15 an hour, a union for all.

03:00And that's not a lot to ask.

03:07Because you are out there mobilizing, that we can point to that organizing and say, this is how bad the people want it.

03:35This is what they are in fact demanding.

03:38And because you are doing the work that we can point to, it allows us to create the political pressure necessary to keep pushing.