While fast-food workers gear up yet again for another one-day strike on Thursday, labor leaders and industry officials debate the possible effects of raising the wages from $7.25 to $15 an hour and are defending companies that believe such an increase would "raise consumer prices and shrink the work force," according to The New York Times,
Restaurant industry officials are calling a raise for minimum wage is a "nonstarter" as far as negotiations, stating that it would drastically raise fast-food prices and decrease employment.
"When you start by insisting on $15 an hour, that's not conducive to substantive dialogue," Scott DeFife, an executive vice president with the National Restaurant Association told the Times.
Mary Kay Henry, the president of the Service Employees International Union, said since protests are becoming so great, it will only a matter of time before fast-food franchisees such as McDonald's, Burger King agree to negotiate. Henry reportedly spent millions of dollars in support of the fast-food strikers around the country.
"I think there's growing recognition that a nerve has been touched," Henry said. "The industry had better start to take this seriously, because this isn't going to blow over."
According to Bloomberg News, members of the U.S. Congress urged McDonald's and other fast-food franchises on Wednesday to raise wages.
"Too many hardworking families are being forced to depend on poverty-level wages," 53 members of Congress wrote in a letter mailed to restaurant executives, Bloomberg reported. "Paying fair wages and putting more spending money in the hands of consumers will strengthen our economy."
Experts who support a small increase are concerned that the raise in minimum wage would have a grand effect on the food industry.
Arindrajit Dube, an economics professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, said an increase in minimum wage would boost fast-food prices by 20 percent, which means "raising the cost of a $3 hamburger to $3.50 or $3.60."
Stephen J. Caldeira, president of the International Franchise Association, backed Dube's estimate and said that the demand for higher wages would lead to a 25-50 percent increase in food prices.
"It would definitely hurt the consumer," he said. "Increasing the cost of labor would lead to higher prices for the consumer, lower foot traffic and sales for franchise owners and ultimately lost entry-level jobs."
Caldeira also suggested the increase would also hurt the employment industry.
"Would I be concerned about possible job losses if there were a $15 minimum wage in the restaurant industry, yes, I'd be concerned," Caldeira said. "There are concerns that it might lead to the substitution of automation for workers."
Thursday's strike is planned for 100 cities including Boston, Denver, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York and Washington. Protesters will be joined by faith and student groups, including USAction and United Students against Sweatshops.
