Fast-food restaurant workers protest for $15-an-hour wages

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Fast-food workers in Los Angeles and across the country are rallying for higher pay. Wednesday's demonstrations are expected to be the largest since the battle over wages began.

A crowd of about 80 union members were on hand at a McDonald's in the Jefferson Park area in Los Angeles early Wednesday morning.

A large crowd also gathered in downtown Los Angeles around midday, shutting down Figueroa Street near 28th Street. They planned to march to the University of Southern California campus.

The demonstrators are calling for $15-an-hour wages.

Several workers at the Jefferson Park McDonald's actually walked off the job Wednesday morning to participate in the rally. They say frankly, they just deserve more.

"We are treated very badly at work, and sometimes the conditions, such as the equipment or the lack of equipment, is not there, and just the fact that we are not paid what we deserve at work," said Jose Paz, a demonstrator.

Elsewhere, the "Fight for $15" protest got an early start Tuesday in Boston, where several hundred people including college students, low-wage workers and their supporters gathered for a rally.

In Detroit, protesters gathered in the evening inside a McDonald's, and organizers say three employees walked off the job as part of the protests.

In New York City, protesters rallied outside a McDonald's early Wednesday morning and were planning more demonstrations throughout the day.

McDonald's earlier this month said it would raise its starting salary to $1 above the local minimum wage, and give workers the ability to accrue paid time off. It marked the first national pay policy by McDonald's, and indicates the company wants to take control of its image as an employer. But the move only applies to workers at company-owned stores, which account for about 10 percent of more than 14,300 locations.

That means McDonald's is digging in its heels over a central issue for labor organizers: Whether it has the power to set wages at franchised restaurants.

McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's say they don't control the employment decisions at franchised restaurants. The Service Employees International Union, which is organizing the rallies, is working to change that and hold McDonald's responsible for labor conditions at franchised restaurants in multiple ways, including lawsuits.

In an emailed statement, McDonald's said it respects the right to "peacefully protest" and that its restaurants will remain open Wednesday. In the past, it said only about 10 to 15 McDonald's workers out of about 800,000 have participated.

In a recent column in The Chicago Tribune, McDonald's CEO Steve Easterbrook described the company's pay hike and other perks as "an initial step," and said he wants to transform McDonald's into a "modern, progressive burger company."

Meantime, the city and county of Los Angeles are looking at possibly passing legislation to make $15 an hour the minimum wage.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.