Would raising the minimum wage to $15 and the right to unionize for fast food employees be a good idea? I can see how workers would say yes, and employers would say no. This is a difficult matter to address. First, when people on a minimum wage income cannot survive and do not have enough money for their living expenses and cannot provide for their family, then I almost have to say yes.
It’s unfortunate that many of these fast food employees work 2 or 3 jobs in order to provide for their families and even then, they can’t. Many of them work tirelessly without proper compensation of overtime provided. Many go from one job straight to the next shift at the other job without breaks and continue for the next 12 hours. Many are still forced to get government assistance as a back up for food and general cash assistance. As much as they are trying to stand on their own two feet, with the cost of living in California, it is nearly impossible to survive off minimum wage.
Would organizing the low wage workers into unions be helpful for them? I don’t know much about unionization. I have heard good things and bad things as well. I would think that organizing a union could be helpful because it would set the ground rules for real compensation, medical expenses, etc. They also ensure that workers are not being taken advantage of at their jobs. When they fight for more money, the unions usually organize the strikes and in the end, it seems like this would be beneficial for low-income workers. In the end, I feel there are pros and cons to both sides.
Monika's Blog 