A campaign organized by labor union SEIU plans to make it harder for you to get an Egg McMuffin or Bavarian Cream doughnut this morning— without at least briefly considering the issue of minimum and livable wages. Fight For 15 is a campaign aimed at raising the minimum wage for fast food and retail workers to $15 an hour, from its present $8.25 in Illinois; workers from downtown businesses ranging from McDonald’s and Dunkin’ Donuts to Macy’s, Sears and Victoria’s Secret are expected to participate during the day. Such campaigns have been running for some months in New York, but they face an obvious uphill battle in inner cities with high double digit unemployment where workers are easily replaceable, and where many would argue that increasing the minimum wage might decrease employment further, especially when it targets brands whose direct employers are more likely small franchisees rather than the large parent corporation.
