The fight to raising the minimum wage has been gaining momentum over the last few months and got another bump on April 15th with demonstrations throughout the country.
Thousands of people in hundreds of events took to the streets, walking off in low wage jobs and holding signs in solidarity with low-wage workers. Fast food workers and low-wage tipped workers were the focal point of many demonstrations.
In Washington DC, Food Chain Workers Alliance along with their member organizations, including Restaurant Opportunities Center (ROC), joined the demonstrations and spoke out against the National Restaurant Association, the lobbying group that has kept tipped wages at $2.13 for decades. Saru Jayaraman of ROC explained to the crowd that it was not just a fight against a lobbying group, but that given the history of tipped wages in the US, “we are trying to overcome the legacy of slavery in this country.”
Meanwhile fair brand Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soap is leading the charge in DC for a local ballot initiative to raise the wage there.
