At 11:30 am on Thursday, the start of the lunch hour rush, 100-some raucous protesters swarmed a Burger King near
New York City's
Penn Station, chanting and holding up signs decrying low wages at the restaurant and other New York fast food purveyors.
Standing behind a metal barricade outside the store, the crowd included clergy, union organizers and workers from Burger King and other fast food restaurants who had gone on strike earlier in the day.
Customers were avoiding the chaos. Inside, the usually bustling restaurant was empty save for its cashiers, a security guard and two customers.
"If there's no workers inside, there's no money for [Burger King]," said Saavedra Jantuah, a cashier who was scheduled to be working behind the counter. "I make $7.25 an hour and that's barely enough to live on."
At
McDonald's,
Domino's,
Wendy's and other fast food restaurants across the city, more workers went on strike Thursday, protesting what they say are wages that keep them in poverty. Strikers hope the walkouts will represent a turning point in the low-wage fast-food industry, where workers typically drift from job to job and the franchise-operated structure creates a hurdle for union organizing. The strikes come on the heels of nationwide strikes at
Walmart, the world's largest retailer, which is widely criticized for its low-paying jobs.
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