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| Labour is 100% behind McStrike, John McDonnell tells rally | Labour is 100% behind McStrike, John McDonnell tells rally |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| Labour has thrown its weight behind unprecedented industrial action by employees in the hospitality sector, with the party instructing its MPs to join workers from Wetherspoon’s, McDonald’s and TGI Fridays on picket lines around the country. | |
| In a day of action by workers in a sector where unions are only now managing to put down roots, members of the Labour campaign group Momentum staged pickets outside a number of McDonald’s restaurants. | |
| Deliveroo and Uber Eats couriers in eight cities were also involved in the strike. Couriers from the latter company and dozens of supporters from the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB) occupied the lobby of the Uber Eats offices in London. | |
| The shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, addressed a rally in Leicester Square, central London, and pledged that Labour in power would act swiftly to introduce a £10-an-hour minimum wage, one of the central demands of those taking part in the strikes on Thursday. | The shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, addressed a rally in Leicester Square, central London, and pledged that Labour in power would act swiftly to introduce a £10-an-hour minimum wage, one of the central demands of those taking part in the strikes on Thursday. |
| “Last night a briefing went out to all Labour MPs, which basically states if there is a picket line in your constituency you have responsibility to join it,” he told hundreds of people at the rally, including supporters from unions such as Unite and the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union, and activists from the campaign group War on Want. | “Last night a briefing went out to all Labour MPs, which basically states if there is a picket line in your constituency you have responsibility to join it,” he told hundreds of people at the rally, including supporters from unions such as Unite and the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union, and activists from the campaign group War on Want. |
| “Let me be absolutely clear that the Labour party is 100% behind this strike. We will fulfil the promise of our late leader John Smith, made way back in the 1990s: trade union rights for everyone,” McDonnell said. | |
| Those gathered in Leicester Square included workers from Wetherspoons restaurants in Brighton, who had travelled to London after beginning a strike at midnight. Among them was Katie Southworth, 22, who described her work at Wetherspoons over the past two years as highly demanding and stressful. | Those gathered in Leicester Square included workers from Wetherspoons restaurants in Brighton, who had travelled to London after beginning a strike at midnight. Among them was Katie Southworth, 22, who described her work at Wetherspoons over the past two years as highly demanding and stressful. |
| “Currently about 80% of my wages goes on accommodation. If we were able to win £10 an hour, it would give me the opportunity to be able to live a fulfilling life, because at the moment I have no hope of being able to live independently or get a mortgage – things that people have taken for granted,” she said. | |
| The TUC general secretary, Frances O’Grady, described the strike as “small but growing”. | The TUC general secretary, Frances O’Grady, described the strike as “small but growing”. |
| “These are often young workers who increasingly feel they have nothing to lose. They are on low pay, often without training and often on zero-hour contracts,” she said. | “These are often young workers who increasingly feel they have nothing to lose. They are on low pay, often without training and often on zero-hour contracts,” she said. |
| “Although these are small-scale actions, they are growing and spreading, and what I find really touching is that these are workers from different companies coming out to support each other. | “Although these are small-scale actions, they are growing and spreading, and what I find really touching is that these are workers from different companies coming out to support each other. |
| “The key point is that a lot of these very rich and powerful multinational firms have deliberately put their workers on contracts that keep them scared. If you are on a zero-hours contract, they don’t have to sack you, they can just stop offering you shifts. So it’s a big ask to stick your head above the parapet.” | “The key point is that a lot of these very rich and powerful multinational firms have deliberately put their workers on contracts that keep them scared. If you are on a zero-hours contract, they don’t have to sack you, they can just stop offering you shifts. So it’s a big ask to stick your head above the parapet.” |
| Customers arriving at McDonald’s outlets around London were greeted by noisy early-morning pickets by Momentum activists carrying banners. Navendu Mishra, who was involved in one of them, said: “Fast-food workers are among the lowest paid of any industry. Their contracts are often precarious and many face disgraceful working conditions, including widespread sexual harassment.” | Customers arriving at McDonald’s outlets around London were greeted by noisy early-morning pickets by Momentum activists carrying banners. Navendu Mishra, who was involved in one of them, said: “Fast-food workers are among the lowest paid of any industry. Their contracts are often precarious and many face disgraceful working conditions, including widespread sexual harassment.” |
| Workers at Uber Eats are asking to be paid £5 for each delivery and a further £1 per mile travelled making those deliveries. Last month, drivers staged a series of walkouts after the company reduced its minimum payment per delivery from £4.26 to £3.50. | |
| The companies targeted by the strike have defended the pay and conditions of their workers. A spokesman for TGI Fridays said: “Our team members are a part of our [TGI] Fridays family. We believe they should be, and are, treated and paid fairly. Out of a workforce of over 5,500 team members, less than 1% are involved in this action.” | |
| An UberEats spokesman said: “In response to feedback from couriers we’ve made some changes to our payment structure in London, which brings it into line with other cities. Our door is always open for individual couriers to speak to us about any issues they’re having.” | An UberEats spokesman said: “In response to feedback from couriers we’ve made some changes to our payment structure in London, which brings it into line with other cities. Our door is always open for individual couriers to speak to us about any issues they’re having.” |
| JD Wetherspoon said it had increased its spending on pay by £20m in the year to July, and would raise it by a further £27m this year. | JD Wetherspoon said it had increased its spending on pay by £20m in the year to July, and would raise it by a further £27m this year. |
| The pub chain’s chairman, Tim Martin, said: “It is understandable that there is pressure on pay with low unemployment and a housing shortage. However, bonuses, free shares and other benefits should be taken into account in assessing pay. I don’t think it would benefit employees overall if, as some suggest, Wetherspoon ended bonuses, free shares and other benefits, and increased the basic rate of pay. | The pub chain’s chairman, Tim Martin, said: “It is understandable that there is pressure on pay with low unemployment and a housing shortage. However, bonuses, free shares and other benefits should be taken into account in assessing pay. I don’t think it would benefit employees overall if, as some suggest, Wetherspoon ended bonuses, free shares and other benefits, and increased the basic rate of pay. |
| “It’s easy to be cynical about business, but companies like McDonald’s, TGI Fridays and thousands of other individuals and businesses make a big contribution to the economy and provide valuable work and experience for many people.” | “It’s easy to be cynical about business, but companies like McDonald’s, TGI Fridays and thousands of other individuals and businesses make a big contribution to the economy and provide valuable work and experience for many people.” |
| Why I’m striking | |
| Katie Southworth, 22, Wetherspoons in Brighton | |
| I’ve worked for Wetherspoons for the past two years in the bar and kitchen and continued after finishing my degree earlier this year. It’s quite a demanding job and you really do feel like you are put under a lot of time pressure. | |
| I was demoted recently from being a shift leader to being a team leader. In the latter role I would typically earn about £8.85 an hour. At the moment though about 80% of my wages go on accommodation. Getting £10 an hour would give me the opportunity to live a fulfilling life. At the moment I have no hope of being able to live independently, get a mortgage or think of so many things that people take for granted. Even booking a holiday. Even booking a holiday I have to give the pub six weeks’ notice and when I come back I have to be able to have enough money to pay my rent. | |
| Boni Adeliyi, 21, TGI Fridays in Milton Keynes | |
| I have been working for TGI Fridays (TGIFs) for about two and a half years, and while I am contracted 12 to 15 hours a week, I have two other jobs so end up working about 25 to 30 hours a week. | |
| I’m taking part in the strike because £10 would make a major difference. It would allow me to focus on one job. At the moment I work days and nights. I will literally work at 10pm at TGIFs and nanny until 10 in the morning and then come back to TGIFs. | |
| I wanted to study but the amount I was able to save basically halved when I went to a back-of-house role at TGIFs. I had to raise £19,000 in fees just for one year. It’s still not as much as I would like to raise but I am able to save it and I do work very hard. | |
| I’ve been in self-employed jobs since the age of 13 but this is my first paid role of this kind, so when I joined Unite earlier this year it gave me a sense of safety and confidence which I never had before. | |
| Lewis Baker, 25, McDonald’s in Crayford | |
| I have worked at McDonald’s for about five years but it was some changes that came in under a new manager – cuts in shifts and extra pressure on people – which got me involved in a union. | |
| Me and two other workers initially started to get involved in the union and put in about 15 grievances, which the company didn’t answer. | |
| I earn about £250 a week but for me a big one is ending youth rates. Sixteen-year-olds at McDonald’s get a minimum, so really a big one for me is ending that differentiation. | |
| I still struggle though. I do about four shifts a week and it’s quite a lot when you are trying to balance studies as well. If I was earning £10 an hour it would make a difference. | |
| I don’t think we have reached a tipping point yet but obviously the action today is massive. I think that the more solidarity we have [the more it] is going to make a difference in the long run. | |
| Even today I got a message on Twitter out of the blue from someone who is a pizza delivery driver from another company. He wanted to know how he could get involved and what he could do. | |
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