"Fast-food workers take stage over wages; Protests’ impact in multiple cities is uncertain" by Sharon Cohen | Associated Pres, August 06, 2013
A few thousand fast-food workers in seven cities, including New York, Chicago, and Detroit, took to the streets last week, carrying ‘‘Strike’’ and ‘‘Supersize Our Wages’’ signs in front of McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King, and other restaurants. They demanded better pay, the right to unionize, and a more than doubling of the federal minimum hourly wage from $7.25 to $15.
‘‘We work hard for companies that are making millions,’’ said Terrance Wise, 35, adding that he lost his home last year, unable to make mortgage payments despite working about 50-hour weeks at Pizza Hut and Burger King. ‘‘We’re not asking for the world. We want to make enough to make a decent living. We deserve better. If they respect us and pay us and treat us right, it’ll lift up the whole economy.’’
These one-day protests, which also took place in St. Louis, Milwaukee, and Flint, Mich., come amid calls from the White House, some members of Congress, and economists to raise the federal minimum wage, which was last increased in 2009.
That's all they ever do is talk, while the corporations they serve are making record profits and their stock is at all-time highs.
Most of the proposals, though, seek a more modest rise than those urged by fast-food workers. President Obama wants to boost the hourly wage to $9. And in July, more than 100 economists signed a petition supporting a bill sponsored by a Florida congressman that would hike it to $10.50 an hour.
The restaurant industry argues that a $15 hourly wage could lead to businesses closing and fewer jobs. It also notes the cost of living varies greatly around the country and many states have higher minimum wages than the federal rate....
The Employment Policies Institute, which receives some funding from the industry, ran a full-page ad last week in USA Today, warning of another potential consequence: It showed the uniform of a fast-food worker with an iPad face, saying the wage increase could result in employees being replaced with automation, such as touchscreen ordering.
As if that isn't going to happen anyway.
So at a time when the economy is growing steadily but slowly and about 11.5 million people are unemployed — nearly double the level before the Great Recession — how likely is it Congress will increase the minimum wage?
Then the Great Recession never ended for most of us. It's only the upper sliver, as it always is, that recovered.
And have these protests done any good?
Ask Occupy.
The answers depend on whom you ask....
--more--"
"Fast-food workers strike for pay" by Leslie Patton | Bloomberg News, July 30, 2013
CHICAGO — Thousands of fast-food workers from restaurants such as McDonald’s Corp. and Wendy’s Co. walked off the job Monday to protest for higher pay.
Maybe I should go apply.
Employees of fast-food eateries struck in New York City, Chicago, St. Louis, Detroit, Milwaukee, Kansas City, Missouri, and Flint, Mich., this week, organizers said in an e-mailed statement. The workers, who also are demanding the right to form a union without retaliation, are organized by groups such as New York Communities for Change, Jobs with Justice, and Action Now. The Service Employees International Union is providing money to the campaigns and helping organize the strikes.
American fast-food and retail workers have been striking this year for higher wages, and the protest starting Monday seeks wages of $15 an hour, 66 percent higher than the $9.02 that US fast-food cooks earn, on average.
McDonald’s chief executive Don Thompson said last week that McDonald’s is an ‘‘above minimum-wage employer’’ during an interview on Bloomberg TV. The world’s largest restaurant chain, with more than 14,100 US locations, will continue to provide entry-level jobs, he said.
Workers from Burger King Worldwide Inc., Domino’s Pizza Inc., and Subway restaurants are also striking.
--more--"
Related: A case for the value menu: it’s not as fattening
What do you mean my Big Mac is going to cost an extra nickel?
"Fast-food wages: Pennies on the Big Mac" August 05, 2013
This summer, fast-food workers are bringing something new to the table. In a series of one-day strikes in cities such as New York, St. Louis, and Chicago, workers have demanded a wage increase to $15 an hour, which in some cases would double their salary. They have taken a bold step in challenging an industry that is traditionally nonunionized, and both legislators and the CEOs of major fast food chains should listen to their arguments. The nation would be better off if fast-food workers earned a livable wage.
The fast-food industry has long staved off unionization, thereby depriving workers of a chance to bargain for better pay and benefits under federal guidelines. Outlets such as McDonald’s and Burger King have a 75 percent annual turnover in employees, making them difficult to organize for union purposes. Meanwhile, the franchise model on which these companies operate — in which stores are owned independently, but are strictly supervised by the corporation — makes large-scale negotiations complicated, as wages are set by both individual store owners and the company as a whole. Thus, the current strikes probably won’t be resolved through collective bargaining. But they could place significant pressure on state and federal lawmakers to increase the minimum wage.
An open letter, signed by more than 100 economists, states that increasing the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.50 an hour would raise the cost of a Big Mac by only 5 cents, if McDonald’s also made slight improvements in productivity.
Like more automation?
A more modest hike to the minimum wage, to $9 per hour, would minimize harm to other industries, which — unlike fast food — have to contend with global competitors. For fast-food workers, a $9-per-hour wage would represent a big raise in many parts of the country. In higher-priced districts, where restaurant owners pay more for rent, they pass on the extra costs of doing business to their customers. They should do the same with higher wages, and customers can easily cover the extra pennies on the burger.
Did I mention we are paying higher taxes while income declines?
--more--"
No concern about obesity?
Must be from the hunger and malnutrition.
"Still tough for Mass. teens to find summer jobs; Even with state and local aid, recession means teens are finding work hard to come by" by Gail Waterhouse | Globe Correspondent, August 06, 2013
Tayshia Holmes-Maxwell, 16, works 20 hours a week for minimum wage, doing clerical work in a Cambridge city office. Her weekly pay is just $160, but Holmes-Maxwell, who will be a junior at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School in the fall, is among the lucky ones who have managed to find work in a summer job market that remains exceedingly tough for teens.
After a burst of hiring in May, teenage employment has stalled this summer, despite earlier hopes that an improving economy would mean more opportunities for teens to gain work experience and earn money to help families, save for college, or both. Nationally, fewer teens were working in July than a year ago, and the teen unemployment rate, 23.7 percent, was essentially unchanged from a year ago....
I think the kids are smart enough to know there never was a recovery, despite the Globe's agenda-pushing horse s***.
In Massachusetts, the situation may be slightly better, according to local workforce specialists, because of substantial funding of teen job programs. The Legislature, for example, approved $10 million, an increase from $8 million in 2012, to fund both summer and year-round jobs, supporting programs that hire teens to work in city halls, local parks, and other public services.
Through a combination of state, local, and private funding, more than 15,000 Massachusetts teens have jobs this summer.
Many of the jobs for teens that exist in Massachusetts are supported with public funds, which is rare among states, said Susan Lange, vice president of the Commonwealth Corporation, the state’s quasi-public workforce development agency, which administers the state funds for teen employment programs.
“We’re in a terrific spot in Massachusetts for subsidized employment,” she said. “While that’s terrific and unique to Massachusetts, it’s never quite enough. There are always more people who want to work than there are funds.”
In Cambridge, for example, approximately 900 jobs are funded through the city, by the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program, and 50 through the state’s YouthWorks initiative. The total budget is $1 million. But there aren’t many opportunities for teens beyond these subsidized programs, said George Hinds, program coordinator for the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program.
“We haven’t seen a rebound yet on private sector jobs,” he said. “It might even still be declining.”
Beyond boosting a teen’s self-esteem, jobs for young people give them skills that prepare them for the workplace and full-time employment. A study released in July by the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University found that having summer jobs made it less likely that low-income teens in Boston would engage in violence.
But teen employment in Massachusetts has declined dramatically over the past decade or so. In 2000, about half of all Massachusetts teens had jobs; by 2012, that plunged to about one-quarter.
The recent recession and sluggish recovery are largely responsible for the difficulties teens have in finding jobs.
Really? I was told they were just damn lazy. That's why more low-wage work visas are needed.
With unemployment at 7 percent in Massachusetts, recent college graduates and other adults are taking retail and fast-food jobs, which historically went to teens, said Andrew Sum, director of the Center for Labor Market Studies.
Was the student loan debt worth it, kiddo?
“Teens are working at the lowest rate than they have in our history,” said Sum. “Employers have choices. Kids go to the back of the queue.”
That’s why state and local governments are stepping in, labor officials said....
Yup, government is once again the savior. Never mind that it is their policies that have created the situation!
Conny Doty, the director of the Mayor’s Office of Jobs and Community Services, estimated that 7,000 were funded by $4.3 million from the city, state, or philanthropic efforts, and about 3,000 teens got paychecks from their private sector employers, local businesses and corporations working with the city to hire teens.
State and local officials say they are also developing programs to make teens better prepared to work, coaching them on so-called soft skills, such as punctuality, proper dress, and proper workforce behavior....
What kind of little impolite, entitled, arrogant shits are coming out of our indoctrinating and inculcating ejewkhazion $y$tems anyway?
I guess you kids better all head to Cambridge.
--more--"
No concern about obesity?
Must be from the hunger and malnutrition.
"Still tough for Mass. teens to find summer jobs; Even with state and local aid, recession means teens are finding work hard to come by" by Gail Waterhouse | Globe Correspondent, August 06, 2013
Tayshia Holmes-Maxwell, 16, works 20 hours a week for minimum wage, doing clerical work in a Cambridge city office. Her weekly pay is just $160, but Holmes-Maxwell, who will be a junior at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School in the fall, is among the lucky ones who have managed to find work in a summer job market that remains exceedingly tough for teens.
After a burst of hiring in May, teenage employment has stalled this summer, despite earlier hopes that an improving economy would mean more opportunities for teens to gain work experience and earn money to help families, save for college, or both. Nationally, fewer teens were working in July than a year ago, and the teen unemployment rate, 23.7 percent, was essentially unchanged from a year ago....
I think the kids are smart enough to know there never was a recovery, despite the Globe's agenda-pushing horse s***.
In Massachusetts, the situation may be slightly better, according to local workforce specialists, because of substantial funding of teen job programs. The Legislature, for example, approved $10 million, an increase from $8 million in 2012, to fund both summer and year-round jobs, supporting programs that hire teens to work in city halls, local parks, and other public services.
Through a combination of state, local, and private funding, more than 15,000 Massachusetts teens have jobs this summer.
Many of the jobs for teens that exist in Massachusetts are supported with public funds, which is rare among states, said Susan Lange, vice president of the Commonwealth Corporation, the state’s quasi-public workforce development agency, which administers the state funds for teen employment programs.
“We’re in a terrific spot in Massachusetts for subsidized employment,” she said. “While that’s terrific and unique to Massachusetts, it’s never quite enough. There are always more people who want to work than there are funds.”
In Cambridge, for example, approximately 900 jobs are funded through the city, by the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program, and 50 through the state’s YouthWorks initiative. The total budget is $1 million. But there aren’t many opportunities for teens beyond these subsidized programs, said George Hinds, program coordinator for the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program.
“We haven’t seen a rebound yet on private sector jobs,” he said. “It might even still be declining.”
Beyond boosting a teen’s self-esteem, jobs for young people give them skills that prepare them for the workplace and full-time employment. A study released in July by the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University found that having summer jobs made it less likely that low-income teens in Boston would engage in violence.
But teen employment in Massachusetts has declined dramatically over the past decade or so. In 2000, about half of all Massachusetts teens had jobs; by 2012, that plunged to about one-quarter.
The recent recession and sluggish recovery are largely responsible for the difficulties teens have in finding jobs.
Really? I was told they were just damn lazy. That's why more low-wage work visas are needed.
With unemployment at 7 percent in Massachusetts, recent college graduates and other adults are taking retail and fast-food jobs, which historically went to teens, said Andrew Sum, director of the Center for Labor Market Studies.
Was the student loan debt worth it, kiddo?
“Teens are working at the lowest rate than they have in our history,” said Sum. “Employers have choices. Kids go to the back of the queue.”
That’s why state and local governments are stepping in, labor officials said....
Yup, government is once again the savior. Never mind that it is their policies that have created the situation!
Conny Doty, the director of the Mayor’s Office of Jobs and Community Services, estimated that 7,000 were funded by $4.3 million from the city, state, or philanthropic efforts, and about 3,000 teens got paychecks from their private sector employers, local businesses and corporations working with the city to hire teens.
State and local officials say they are also developing programs to make teens better prepared to work, coaching them on so-called soft skills, such as punctuality, proper dress, and proper workforce behavior....
What kind of little impolite, entitled, arrogant shits are coming out of our indoctrinating and inculcating ejewkhazion $y$tems anyway?
I guess you kids better all head to Cambridge.
--more--"
And to drink with that?
Here's your order:
"Beef made in a lab gets its first taste; Verdict: Not bad, but pass the relish" by Maria Cheng | Associated Press, August 06, 2013
LONDON — Mark Post, a Dutch scientist who led the team that grew the meat from cattle stem cells....
I just lost my appetite.
Post, whose team at Maastricht University developed the burger over five years, hopes that making meat in labs could eventually help feed the world and fight climate change....
Followed by uncontrollable gas.
‘‘The first [lab-made] meat products are going to be very exclusive,’’ said Isha Datar, director of New Harvest, a nonprofit that promotes meat alternatives. ‘‘These burgers won’t be in Happy Meals before someone rich and famous is eating them.’’
Sergey Brin, a cofounder of Google, said he funded the $330,000 project, motivated by a concern for animal welfare....
Stop eating meat.
‘‘I’m a vegetarian, but I would be first in line to try this,’’ said Jonathan Garlick, a stem cell researcher at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine in Boston. He has used similar techniques to make human skin but wasn’t involved in the burger research.
Scientists agreed that improving the flavor probably won’t be hard.
Oh, tasted like s***, did it?
Do you really know what you are chewing anymore? And what's with the crunch?
‘‘Taste is the least [important] problem, since this could be controlled by letting some of the stem cells develop into fat cells,’’ said Stig Omholt, at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences.
He called Monday’s tasting a publicity stunt — but not in a bad way. He said it was a smart way to draw attention, and possibly investor funds....
By 2050, the Food and Agriculture Organization predicts, global meat consumption will double. Raising animals destined for the dinner table takes up about 70 percent of all agricultural land.
Then we should all be vegans.
The animal rights group PETA has thrown its support behind the laboratory-meat initiative.
--more--"
I've heard British beef is bad, but..... (blog editor running to al-cia-duh).
Maybe I should have gotten a chicken something:
"Tyson Foods Inc., the nation’s biggest meat producer, rose after announcing that its quarterly profits had more than tripled. Tyson reported record sales of $8.7 billion and said chicken unit profit of $220 million set a record, while the beef unit rebounded with earnings of $114 million."
You got any McRibs?
Here's your order:
"Beef made in a lab gets its first taste; Verdict: Not bad, but pass the relish" by Maria Cheng | Associated Press, August 06, 2013
LONDON — Mark Post, a Dutch scientist who led the team that grew the meat from cattle stem cells....
I just lost my appetite.
Post, whose team at Maastricht University developed the burger over five years, hopes that making meat in labs could eventually help feed the world and fight climate change....
Followed by uncontrollable gas.
‘‘The first [lab-made] meat products are going to be very exclusive,’’ said Isha Datar, director of New Harvest, a nonprofit that promotes meat alternatives. ‘‘These burgers won’t be in Happy Meals before someone rich and famous is eating them.’’
Sergey Brin, a cofounder of Google, said he funded the $330,000 project, motivated by a concern for animal welfare....
Stop eating meat.
‘‘I’m a vegetarian, but I would be first in line to try this,’’ said Jonathan Garlick, a stem cell researcher at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine in Boston. He has used similar techniques to make human skin but wasn’t involved in the burger research.
Scientists agreed that improving the flavor probably won’t be hard.
Oh, tasted like s***, did it?
Do you really know what you are chewing anymore? And what's with the crunch?
‘‘Taste is the least [important] problem, since this could be controlled by letting some of the stem cells develop into fat cells,’’ said Stig Omholt, at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences.
He called Monday’s tasting a publicity stunt — but not in a bad way. He said it was a smart way to draw attention, and possibly investor funds....
By 2050, the Food and Agriculture Organization predicts, global meat consumption will double. Raising animals destined for the dinner table takes up about 70 percent of all agricultural land.
Then we should all be vegans.
The animal rights group PETA has thrown its support behind the laboratory-meat initiative.
--more--"
I've heard British beef is bad, but..... (blog editor running to al-cia-duh).
Maybe I should have gotten a chicken something:
"Tyson Foods Inc., the nation’s biggest meat producer, rose after announcing that its quarterly profits had more than tripled. Tyson reported record sales of $8.7 billion and said chicken unit profit of $220 million set a record, while the beef unit rebounded with earnings of $114 million."
You got any McRibs?
