Fast Food Protest

Vocabulary

Video: Fast Food Protest

Transcript

New York was the scene of angry protests. These people have had enough of low-wage jobs. They say the fast-food chains are exploiting them.

Many are scarcely earning the minimum wage of $7 and hour. They want twice that.

First Protester: “We busting our butts, each and every day. And they are making money off of our backs. So now we’re standing up strong, so they can’t ride our backs anymore.”

Second Protester: “I cannot survive right now; I’m struggling. But I have to make due with what I have. It’s hard going back and forth to work and my kids are going to school.”

The fast food companies say low wages mean they can create more jobs. The protesters say that’s economy at their expense.

Kendall Fells, Global Protest Organiser: “Today is the first worldwide strike for fast-food workers, and we’re starting to fight the industry on an international level.

And if the industry doesn’t respond, then this is just going to get bigger and bigger and bigger until they realize this isn’t going away, and this isn’t a nightmare; this is reality.”

Fast food workers in 30 other countries joined in the day of protest, upping the pressure on companies to change their tune.

Questions

1. People are protesting. Who are protesting? Why are they protesting? What do they want?

2. Their work is very hard. True or false?

3. Are the worker’s lives easy or difficult?

4. Do the fast food company want to pay high, medium or low wages to their employees? Why do they pay low wages?

5. Fast food workers are protesting only in New York. Is this correct or wrong?
 
 
A. Who works in fast food restaurants in your city?

B. What is the typical resume or CV of fast food workers? What happens to them?

C. Do you agree or disagree with the protesters? What should they do?

D. How do the fast food companies feel? What should they do?
 
 

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