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One In Three People Are Boycotting Brands Over Israel’s War On Gaza

More than one in three people say they are boycotting a brand viewed as supporting a side in Israel's war on Gaza, with oil-rich Gulf states and large Muslim-majority countries leading the way. The latest edition of an annual Trust Barometer report from public relations firm Edelman underscored how sharp divides over the war are causing consumers across the globe to take a stance with their wallets. The survey polled 15,000 consumers across 15 countries, including France, Saudi Arabia, the UK and the US. The poll didn't say who respondents sided with in the war, but out of the top five countries listed as engaged on boycotting brands over Gaza, three are Muslim-majority nations: Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Indonesia.

Lawsuit: Alabama Is Denying Prisoners Parole To Lease Their Labor

Working in the freezer at Southeastern Meats, a meatpacking facility based in Birmingham, Ala., ​“was the worst job I’ve ever had in my entire life,” Lakiera Walker tells In These Times. Her 12-hour shifts were spent inside a refrigerated building as cold as 30 or 40 degrees, and she had to beg or borrow warm clothes from her friends and family because the employer didn’t provide any. She couldn’t even take solace in the idea that she was saving up money for her future, because the prison where she spent the rest of her waking hours was taking a 40% cut on top of various fees.

McDonald’s Records Sales Downturn Over Israel Support

McDonald’s Corp. missed investor expectations as sales growth decelerated in the fourth quarter of last year, partially due to their support for Israel, Bloomberg reported on 5 February. The sales pace is the slowest since the fourth quarter of 2020, below the average estimate of analysts. Global same-store sales only rose 3.4 percent during the final business quarter of 2023, well below Wall Street's expected 4.7 percent increase. Sales expectations were lowered following comments made by McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski in January, when he stated that markets in West Asia and others outside of the region were facing a “meaningful business impact” because of the war between the Palestinian resistance and Israel.

Half A Million California Workers Get A Raise And A Seat At The Table

In the realm of burgers and fries, California’s hot labor summer is sizzling. In a remarkable reversal of fortune, the state’s fast-food worker movement, created and steered by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), has compelled the giants of the fast-food industry (both national stalwarts like McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King, and Starbucks and local legends like In-N-Out) to withdraw their opposition to raising their workers’ wages and establishing a statewide labor-business board to deal with industry issues. Last year, after the legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law a bill that established such a council to raise those wages, the industry announced it would put $200 million behind a ballot measure it had devised to overturn that law.

When McDonalds Came To Denmark

Every few months, a prominent person or publication points out that McDonalds workers in Denmark receive $22 per hour, 6 weeks of vacation, and sick pay. This compensation comes on top of the general slate of social benefits in Denmark, which includes child allowances, health care, child care, paid leave, retirement, and education through college, among other things. In these discussions, relatively little is said about how this all came to be. This is sad because it’s a good story and because the story provides a good window into why Nordic labor markets are the way they are. McDonalds opened its first store in Denmark in 1981. At that point, it was operating in over 20 countries and had successfully avoided unions in all but one, Sweden.

McDonald’s Employees Walk Out

Citing unresolved complaints, disparities in wages with other businesses, staffing shortages and issues with building maintenance, the entire staff of the McDonald’s in Bradford who worked the weekend morning shift walked out in protest Sunday morning. Due to the lack of staff, the franchise was forced to close for several hours until alternative staff from other McDonald’s franchises could arrive. According to a former employee who said he quit last week after working for the store for more than a decade, and who asked not to be named, “this is not the first incident of employees walking out of the Bradford store due to issues with executive management.” He said that last summer, during a night shift, the staff left due to an ongoing issue with the air conditioning units in the kitchen not functioning properly.

Animal Extinction Protesters Blockade McDonalds Factory

Animal Rebellion protesters have barricaded a McDonald's factory in Scunthorpe in a move to get the burger chain to switch to an entirely "plant-based food menu by 2025." The ‘animal and climate justice’ movement said that around 100 protestors set up a blockade using trucks, tents, bamboo structures in the early hours of Thursday morning to stop the facility from distributing burgers. Trucks with the sign “McMurder” stood outside the factory while police vans encircled the area. The campaigners, urging others to join in, said they will stay as long as it takes until McDonald’s commits to changing towards a plant-based menu. Accusing the global fast-food chain of poor labour conditions and wreaking havoc on the environment, the activists said that they would end the blockade if McDonald’s makes the first step towards this goal by committing to becoming 20 per cent plant-based within one year.

United Kingdom: Animal Rights Group Blockades McDonalds

Environmental activits are blockading four McDonald's distribution centres in a bid to stop deliveries to the fast food giant’s restaurants across the country this weekend. Animal Rebellion say that some 50 demonstrators have used trucks and bamboo towers to stop lorries leaving depots in Hemel Hempstead, Basingstoke, Coventry and Heywood in Greater Manchester. They have poured fake animal blood over signage with some protesters dressed as the chain’s mascot, Ronald McDonald. Demonstrators say they are targeting the chain because of its “role in the climate emergency" and are demanding McDonald’s – which has 1,300 restaurants across the UK – commits to being fully plant-based by 2025.

Nationwide McDonald’s Strike Rejects ‘PR Stunt’ Wage Hike Plan

Thousands of workers of McDonald’s chain in 15 cities across the United States went on strike for wage hikes. On Wednesday, May 19, workers organized in the “Fight for 15” campaign participated in the one-day strike action across the country demanding that the minimum wages for workers at the McDonald’s chains be hiked to USD 15 per hour and the right to unionize.

90-Day Protest Begins At McDonald’s Headquarters

Chicago - Community organizers on Monday kicked off 90 days of picketing at McDonald’s world headquarters in the West Loop, hoping to call attention to what they say are discriminatory practices against Black-owned franchises. “We are coming after every McDonald’s that we shop in,” activist Mark Carter said Monday morning. “We send this message starting today that if you don’t want to see us outside of your headquarters, then it would be in your best interest to sit down with those who have traveled 700 miles from Memphis, Tennessee.” The protest was organized ahead of a meeting scheduled for Tuesday in Chicago between McDonald’s executives and two brothers from Memphis, James Byrd and Darrell Byrd, who own four locations between them.

McDonald’s Workers Across The US Strike To Protest Coronavirus Working Conditions

Hundreds of McDonald’s workers in the US are protesting unsatisfactory working conditions during the coronavirus pandemic, with some quitting and others decrying the risk they say they’re being exposed to from Covid-19. Strikes took place in over 20 cities across the US, including Oakland, Sacramento, San Francisco, and San Jose in California, as well as St. Louis, Missouri, Little Rock, Arkansas, and Memphis, Tennessee. The protests were planned for Wednesday, ahead of the company’s annual shareholders meeting the following day.  Some vehicles also blocked drive-throughs and sported signs asking for an increase in their wages and better access to personal protective equipment. 

Workers File Sexual Harassment Class-Action Lawsuit Against McDonald’s

On Monday, Florida McDonald's workers announced they had filed a $500 million class-action lawsuit against McDonald's, alleging the fast-food giant has a "systemic sexual harassment problem."  Jamelia Fairley and Ashley Reddick are the named plaintiffs in the suit, which was filed on behalf of the 5,000 women who worked at the 100 corporate-run McDonald's locations in Florida since 2016. Fairley and Reddick were coworkers at a McDonald's location in Florida, where they say that women faced physical assaults, groping, and sexually-charged comments on the job.  Reddick said she dealt with sexual comments from a male coworker, who said things such as "I didn't know you had boobs like that." The coworker allegedly would rub his groin against Reddick and showed her a picture of his private parts on his phone without her consent.

McDonald’s Workers Go On Strike Over Unsafe Conditions, Lost Hours, Pay Cuts

St. Louis, MO - Some McDonald's workers in St. Louis, Tampa and Memphis have gone on strike to protest unsafe working conditions, pay cuts and lost hours. More than 100 workers across the three cities have walked off the job or waged stay-at-home strikes, according to a news release. While McDonald's U.S. locations have closed their dining areas, the stores are still serving customers via drive-thru, take-out and the company's McDelivery service. Some McDonald's workers in Tampa kicked off the strike on Tuesday, alleging the company would not allow them to wear face masks. The walkout was reported on Twitter by Fight for $15, a global movement that advocates for workers' rights and a $15 minimum wage. The group has created a petition demanding that McDonald's provide paid sick leave for all workers, among other COVID-19 related demands.

McDonalds’ Workers Strike Is About Workplace Democracy

On Tuesday, over 1,000 people gathered for a strike action at a McDonald's location on Detroit’s East Side. The workers, who were fighting for basic workplace dignity, a fair wage and a union, showed that they’re ready to raise hell in the face of injustice by standing together. That’s how Patricia Moseley, who has worked for McDonald’s for 34 years, describes her experience of solidarity during the strike. “We always get each other’s backs,” Moseley says. “When I see people out here, doing the same thing I'm doing, it makes me feel like ‘Hey, everybody can do this.’ Come and join us. You ain't gotta be scared.”

McDonald’s, UberEats And Wetherspoon Workers Strike Over Pay

UberEats riders and a small number of workers from JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays have been staging walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square was addressed by TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady and shadow chancellor John McDonnell. Mr McDonnell said: "Our message to exploitative employers is that we are coming for you."

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