Background: We all know that the COVID-19 has changed the way we used to live life. As of May 14, 2020, there have been 34,413 cases of COVID-19 identified in Chicago residents so far and 87,937 in Illinois according to the official City of Chicago website. The state of Illinois has also confirmed an increase of 3,200 new COVID-19 cases on this Thursday. This being said, the statistics show that the COVID-19 is only growing bigger. People have become more concern for their health that 22,678 people have been tested in the past 24hrs according to the ABC7 Chicago news. There has also been an increase of 138 deaths instead of there being a decrease. This is a growing virus that will keep spreading!

What is the problem: As a manager in one of the biggest known fast food restaurants I know what a regular day looks like at work. Ever since the COVID-19 came into place our work duties have drastically changed. We used to go to work happy and in a good mood. Now the thought of exposing ourselves to the virus makes us scared and nervous to go to work. Although we are only open through drive-through, we are still exposed to over 200 customers per day. Not only are we exposed to so many different people in one day, but the amount of work that we are expected to perform has increased. As managers we are to look out for all the workers safety. We are to take each of our workers temperature before their shift. We also have to supervise and advice our workers to clean and sanitize everything every 20 minutes aside of already washing and changing our gloves every 20 minutes. We also have new procedures on how to complete a correct transaction with the customer. We are to use trays to keep our distance and to avoid touching the customer. It is very tedious, but we understand that it is for everyone’s safety. At the end of the day we are risking our life and our family’s’ life exposing ourselves every day to over 200 different customers. We are also working double to make sure we keep everybody safe. The fact that we are still getting paid the same is really against our economic justice.  If we get infected, we are NOT going to get paid. We are working so hard and we are not getting valued. People who are on unemployment are getting paid for the COVID-19 plus a check from work while they are at home safe. Essential workers are risking their life and working twice as hard to be getting paid the minimum. The amount of work we are doing every single day does not balance out with the amount of money we are getting paid. This is an economic injustice!

What will solve it: Unfortunately, we all know that fast food restaurants are essential. Therefore, closing would not be an option. However, we believe that we should get a raise of at least $1. We know that getting a raise is not going to stop us from getting exposed to the virus, however, we are working harder and have completely new processes that we must do daily and some even hourly. It is tiring and by the time our shift is over we are exhausted. A raise will at least help us feel a little more valued and will even out with the amount of work that we are doing. It will also provide us financial stability. If we were to get sick, there is no compensation nor guarantee that we will get paid. We demand a raise of at least $1 because we have family that depend on us as a source of income.