Hong Kong labour unions, green group join forces to pressure McDonald’s
Alliance for Our McDonald’s formed after activist artist Luke Ching fired as janitor from fast food chain
Hong Kong labour unions and a green group have joined hands to urge McDonald’s to respond to public appeals after the fast food chain sacked an artist known for taking on blue-collar jobs to champion workers’ rights.
The Alliance for Our McDonald’s, formed by 53-year-old activist artist Luke Ching Chin-wai and four groups, announced its formation on Saturday at one of the chain’s outlets.
The coalition’s first campaign was to gather public feedback on the eatery whose management they deemed had failed to tolerate criticism.
Ching’s dismissal earlier this year prompted the campaign. The artist was fired by McDonald’s as a part-time janitor following his open letter to the company’s CEO suggesting a resumption of mealtime pay for employees.
“As McDonald’s celebrates its 50th anniversary in Hong Kong, it should respond to changes instead of being nostalgic and talking about the past,” Wan Pok-kin, organiser of the Catering and Hotels Industries Employees General Union, one of the alliance founding members, said.
“We hope they can take actual actions to respond to the demands of employees instead of silencing them.”
