Strike Action Spreads to Call Center, Burger King, Wellington
The Pizza Hut and KFC national call center, the first Burger King stores and the first Wellington fast food store, joined the SuperSizeMyPay.Com month of industrial action last night.
Press Release: SuperSizeMyPay.Com/Unite
Saturday, 25 February 2006, 12.00am
Month of Strike Action Spreads to Call Center, Burger King, Wellington
The Pizza Hut and KFC national call center, the first Burger King stores and the first Wellington fast food store, joined the SuperSizeMyPay.Com month of industrial action last night.
SuperSizeMyPay.Com campaign co-ordinator, Simon Oosterman, said that the actions were a part of an escalating month of industrial action in the fast food industry leading up to the ‘BigPayOut.co.nz’ demonstration and free concert on Saturday, 18th of March.
“In central Auckland, 60 call center workers, who take delivery orders for KFC and Pizza Hut nation-wide, went on strike. The striking workers called on customers who were ordering pizzas on the 0800 83 83 83 number to say a message of support, and kept the strike to an hour to minimise disruption to customers,” he said.
“The call center workers, who are a part of the SuperSizeMyPay.Com campaign, but who have a different contract to the fast food stores, are asking for a training rate of $11 and $12.50 after 3 months as well as a 50% discount on Restaurant Brands food.
“In west Auckland, workers from two fast food stores became the first ever striking Burger King workers in New Zealand. The workers took action despite a memo sent from their head office falsely claiming that they would be fired if they took industrial action.
“In true ‘westie’ style, the strikers and supporters drove from store to store, revving and beeping and spreading the strikes to two west Auckland KFC stores.
“Meanwhile, in Porirua Wellington, one of the highest volume KFC stores in New Zealand was closed when the entire crew walked off the job. The workers were joined by 20 of their non-rostered workmates and 50 supporters, including a brass band and local city councilors,” he concluded.
Fast food workers from McDonalds, Burger King, Restaurant Brands (KFC, Pizza Hut, Starbucks) and Wendy’s are calling on their companies to give them the SuperSizeMyPay.Com campaign demands of a $12 minimum wage, an end to youth rates and secure hours. (Wendy’s and Starbucks do not pay youth rates.)
The workers are also calling on the government to legislate these demands for all low paid and minimum wage workers in Aotearoa/New Zealand..
ENDS
Simon Oosterman is available for contact on 0274 555 789
For more information visit: http://www.SuperSizeMyPay.Com
(Cellphone and digital video footage and photos will be uploaded to the website over the next 24 hours.)
Related
http://supersizemypay.com/month_of_strike_action_spreads_to_call_center_burger_king_wellington
Comments
Re: Strike Action Spreads to Call Center, Burger King, Wellingto
aaaah for cellphone footage. (-;
Re: Strike Action Spreads to Call Center, Burger King, Wellingto
Great stuff - taking it to the laissez-faire government too.
Footage of the SupersizeMyPay.com campaign was shown at the Windymedia film night last night and was applauded loudly by the audience.
Re: Strike Action Spreads to Call Center, Burger King, Wellingto
wicked, things just get better and better, nice work all those involved
Re: Strike Action Spreads to Call Center, Burger King, Wellingto
Brass Razoo Solidarity Band were proud to be part of this occasion.
We play for a wide range of union and protest actions but feel most at home on picket lines where workers have taken matters into their own hands and are standing up to take control of their own destiny, as did the Porirua KFC workers last night.
In my personal opinion a solid two hour strike such as we witnessed oustside KFC last night is worth more than two hundred years of polite appeals for the bosses to be nicer to their staff.
If they want to, other players in the union movement can learn profitably from the strong lead currently on offer from staunch young Unite members.
Re: Strike Action Spreads to Call Center, Burger King, Wellingto
Yes its always great to hear this sort of thing