The Bosses are Bastards at Hungry Jacks

[These photos are from an action outside Hungry Jacks in Perth on August 31. Similar actions took place around the rest of the country as well. The text below is from a leaflet handed out on the day]

Right now there is a major push by sections of corporate Australia to end weekend penalty rates (where workers get paid extra for working anti-social hours).

Hungry Jack's is part of a cartel including McDonalds, Pizza Hut, KFC and others that are mounting a case to effectively eliminate the weekend.

Hungry Jacks had an operating income of over $1 billion in 2010 and a 50 per cent increase in profits that year. But they just want to gouge more out of their workforce by taking away penalty rates.

In New Zealand/ Aotearoa, Burger King (which is Hungry Jacks’ name in New Zealand) attempted to break the union of fast food workers there and launched a vicious campaign against union members in stores.

The young workers there stood together and refused to give in the Burger King’s bullying tactics. They campaigned against the shit conditions they were being forced into, and won public support.

Today, the union (called “Unite”) has announced that they have forced BK to come to an agreement. Sacked workers will be reinstated and compensated and that conditions will improve.

This shows the power of workers, even in casualised fast food industries. When we stick together, we can win. Even against fast food companies like these.