Recently there has been a lot of hub bub over fast food workers requesting a salary increase and even in some areas worker strikes or walk outs occurred as a way to get their point across. The federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour and although many employees of fast food chains make more than that, they are still below the poverty line when it comes to income.
“According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in May 2012 nearly 7 million Americans worked in the fast-food industry, including 3.4 million counter workers, 2.9 million in preparation and serving, and more than 500,000 cooks. Their average pre-tax yearly income comes to about $18,770, which is just over $9 an hour. For a family of three, that’s well below the federal poverty line of $19,530. For the 3.6 million Americans who earn the $7.25 federal minimum wage or less, their maximum before-tax income of $15,080 puts them below the poverty line for a two-person household.”(Journalist Resource 2013)
The employees of the fast food chains were requesting raises to include added benefits and an hourly rate of $13.00-$15.00 dollars per hour. The problem with that is not only does it impact the profits of the big companies, it would also cause the cost of the food to skyrocket! Most of us that go to fast food restaurants do so because, now let’s be honest, the food is tasty, fast, and cheap. If the employees were to be paid at such competitive rates, the costs would increase as well as the competition of such positions and quite frankly, career fast food workers is not a career path at all. It has been my experience that those which work at fast food restaurants are teenagers working their first jobs or other people that are just passing through until another, better job opportunity comes along. No matter which way you view such jobs, there is one thing that I find very distressing about these chains and that is the question of business ethics.
Since the workers in these restaurant chains do not make a living wage many rely on federal and state funded assistance programs and McDonalds among others, has been accused of encouraging employees to apply for such benefits as it will provide for supplemental assistance and keep wages down.
“Large corporations, including fast-food leader McDonald’s, have been accused of encouraging workers to sign up for SNAP, allowing them to keep wages low and profits up (the firm had net earnings of $1.52 billion in the second quarter of 2013). Many other fast-food giants, including Burger King, KFC, Dunkin’ Donuts and Wendy’s, have been found to have large numbers of employees who have to use federal and state programs for basic necessities.” (Journalist Resource 2013)
This is a moral and ethical problem because the corporations are more than able to increase workers’ wages but instead, they have decided to pass the problem of low wage earners and meeting basic needs to federal and state agencies with are funded by our tax dollars. As a secondary issue, it has been proven that those making low wages also have poorer health and lower life expectancy.
“A related 2009 study by Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland, “The Economic Burdens of Health Inequalities in the United States,” found that health inequalities and premature deaths because of poor care impose substantial costs — between 2003 and 2006 alone, $1.24 trillion. Minorities suffered disproportionately: 31% of direct medical care expenditures for African Americans ($135.9 billion), Asians ($11.4 billion) and Hispanics ($82 billion) were excess costs due to health inequalities, the study found.” (Journalist Resource 2013)
When we have the opportunity to help one another and we don’t or just merely point people in the general area of where to find help, we are in fact doing ourselves a disservice as a country. The time for reform and action is long overdue and if we as people and a unified country cannot see that we all matter and it is our duty as human beings to help others when we can then I’m am even more fearful for our future.
http://www.jointcenter.org/hpi/sites/all/files/Burden_Of_Health_FINAL_0.pdf
Northouse, P.G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications.
The Economic Burdens of Health Inequalities in the United States 2009