McDonald's employees in the United Kingdom (UK) will go on strike to participate in a global day of protests for better wages.
Employees at six South London McDonald's stores will take to the streets on Tuesday while protests are being held across the UK, including outside Downing Street. These workers are calling for an end to the so-called "poverty pay" rates and demanding better terms and conditions.
However, McDonald's claimed that those who will join the strikes were only a "tiny proportion" of its UK workforce.
These demonstrations are part of a global day of protests and strikes by McDonald's workers all across the world, including the US, France, Brazil and Chile.
McDonald's workers in the UK are demanding a raise in wage to £15 an hour, which more than 30% higher than what they currently earn. Their other demands include ending the company's youth rates, the choice of guaranteed hours of up to 40 hours a week, notice of shifts four weeks in advance and recognition of their union, the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers' Union (BFAWU).
Lewis Baker, an employee at Crayford McDonald's in London, said he will join the strike because he is struggling to pay rent on his income of £8.80 an hour. Baker pointed out: "There are a lot of workers who are struggling to pay their bills and get by day to day. We don't have set hours, so we don't always earn enough to pay the bills."
"If we got £15 an hour, it would have a massive impact - I would be able to afford to pay my rent, to pay my bills, go on holiday and have some kind of work-life balance," he added.
This is the fourth time McDonald's employees in the UK have protested since September 2017. The company has been criticized for paying executives huge amounts of money, while employees struggle to get by.
As an example, ousted CEO Steve Easterbrook received a total pay of $15.9 million in 2018, which was 2,124 times the median McDonald's employee annual salary of $7,473.
