Workers at McDonald's Hastings went on strike for an hour today, demanding better salary increases to a living wage.
Unite Union members at McDonald’s Hastings walked off the job in a strike action during the morning shift today, as part of the campaign of a pathway to a living wage.
Over 2000 Unite Union members who work at McDonald’s are in bargaining with the company following the expiry of their two-year Collective Agreement. After a disappointing pay offer, Union members have voted to reject the company’s most recent proposal.
McDonald’s workers at Hastings will walk off shift and demonstrate outside the store during the morning shift this Wednesday, in part of the campaign of industrial action as a show of workers standing up for their rights.
McDonald’s has offered a below-inflation pay increase in this cost-of-living crisis, which means workers are worse off overall despite the company being profitable and making 105 million dollars in New Zealand in its last declared financial records.
“Workers deserve a path to a living wage. McDonald’s would rather fight their own staff than give people a decent increase in a cost of living crisis, that's outrageous,” said Ben Peterson, Unite Union Assistant Secretary.
The Coalition Government repealed the Fair Legislation at the end of 2023. While that means Unite Union can’t use that process to bargain for better pay and conditions for all hospo workers, it can still bargain with employers directly to achieve the same improvements, just as it has for the past twenty years for Fast Food, Hotel, Casino and Cinema workers across the country.
Improvements that Unite Union would like to see is an increase to the living wage, exactly what McDonald’s Hastings workers have asked for, overtime pay for more than 40 hours, penal rates, a fair tips policy with no employer retention of tips, and split shift allowance.
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