Wok On - Wok Off!

Leeds Revo win fight for "wok-ers' rights" at noodle house

REVOLUTION organised a protest in Leeds on Saturday against a chain of restaurants called Wok On and won the minimum wage and the right to unionise. Wok On had offered a 24-year-old member of REVOLUTION £4 an hour for working as a chef/waiter and employed a 14-year-old to leaflet in the city centre and paid her in noodles! Not only were Wok On refusing to pay the pittance of a minimum wage, never mind a living wage, but they were exploiting the fact that there's not even a minimum wage for under 16s and that so many youth now desperate for work to support themselves and their families.

A group of around 20 protesters took to the streets just outside Wok On's main restaurant in Leeds They were demanding "equal wages for all ages" and telling the management "low pay no way". While the bulk of protesters stayed outside the shop, leafletting and talking with would-be diners, generally causing embarassment for the owners of the shop, and others confonted management with the accusations that they were underpaying workers, breaking laws and exploiting young people. The manager denied that he'd broken the law but admitted that he'd paid under-16s in noodles, arguing that it was a fair deal but that if he'd have known she was poor then he'd have paid her in cash instead.

He agreed that he would pay all staff the legal minimum wage and that a trade union rep would be allowed to go in and speak to his staff next week. Although they didn't win a living wage for the staff this was a victory and the unionisation of the staff could lead to further struggles for better pay and retail-sector resistance to job cuts. The next target will be McDonalds, calling for the right to unionise and a minimum wage for all staff irregardless of age, in the build up to a tour of shame through Leeds city centre of youth protesting against super-exploitation and unemployment.

www.worldrevolution.org.uk

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• Wok on
• wok
• on
• off
• leeds
• revolution
• socialist
• youth
• communist
• exploitation
• workers
• rights
• minimum wage

[funkymoonMonkey]

What a bunch of twats!

People who work hard shouldn't have to take abuse from kids who's

Unrealistic Idealizem has all ready been proved to fail over & over.

Earning a living is hard but we should't strip people who have worked

hard & smart of their hard earned assets. That would mean no one would have any motivation to work & nothing

would get accomplished, Then you wouldn't have any meaning socailist bigatry

Sit in your room & don't come out till you've finished Animal farm

[Sedition1917]

@funkymoonMonkey Yes I have read animal farm- a compelling tale about how far stalinism led the revolutionary process astray. That guy was the owner- he was stripping people of their ability to gain what they deserved; he was paying young people in noodles! I don't think complaining and raising awareness of the issue is bigotry (he wasn't picked out for protest because of his racial/religious/cultural background)

[shawfulgamer]

lordlemmewinks just brought this to my attention....if someone agrees to hand out a few flyers for a box of noodles surely it's their choice? no-one at wokon has ever been fully paid in noodles. get a hobby you set of sad pricks.

[scotsocialistyouth]

nice one!