Catherwood LibraryILR School

Fast food workers around California have joined together to form the California Fast Food Workers Union. The new union will represent cashiers and cooks in the fast food industry and will work to negotiate greater pay, greater employee benefits, and better workplace conditions for thousands of employees. The California Fast Food Workers Union is supported by the Service Employees International Union, a leading union in the United States that represents almost two million workers in various sectors. The unionization of these workers came after fast food workers successfully negotiated a minimum wage of $20/hour in the state. A majority of fast food employees in the state are people of color and around two-thirds of these workers are women, and workers stated that the union will give them a voice against major corporations. Various workers have state that they have experienced wage theft, sexual harassment, staffing shortages, and other issues while on the job, and unionizing gives workers the power to demand changes.