Low- paid workers march for fairness

As the economy recovers, millions fall behind; rallies call for ‘ living wage’

Low- wage workers across the country are clocking out and rising up.

Fast- food employees plan a day of nationwide strikes today to demand higher pay in the largest of a series of industry protests that have rippled across the USA since last fall.

In the pre- Labor Day walkout, workers in at least 58 cities will picket restaurants such as McDonald’s, Burger King and KFC during peak lunch hours, calling for $ 15- an- hour pay and the right to form a union without fear of retaliation. The event is also intended to roughly coincide with the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington, a protest as much about economic justice as civil rights.

At a ceremony Wednesday commemorating the march, President Obama said that many of its goals have been achieved — but not eco- nomic opportunity for all Americans.

“For over a decade, working Americans of all races have seen their wages and incomes stagnate, even as corporate profits soar, even as the pay of a fortunate few explodes,” he said. Obama has called for raising the federal minimum wage from $ 7.25 to $ 9, but the measure has stalled in Congress.

The wave of fast- food demonstrations comes as low- wage jobs dominate employment growth in the 4- year- old recovery, and as more adults find themselves aging in positions that used to be career steppingstones for teenagers. The trend has strained the nation’s social safety net: More than a quarter of Americans

JOHN MINCHILLO, AP Ralliers in support of fast- food workers march July 29 toward a McDonald’s in New York to demand higher wages and union rights.