California State Senate passes fast food worker rights bill

California State Senate passes fast food workers rights bill

The State Senate has passed the fast food workers rights bill, much to the relief of employees FOX 11's Hal Eisner spoke with.

LOS ANGELES - As mariachi music blasted into the air, the celebration that started inside the offices of Local 721 of the Los Angeles Service Employees International Union moved to the sidewalks. The enthusiasm followed the passage by the California State Senate of Assembly Bill 257, which will establish state and local fast food councils.

It would be the first of a kind. For fast food worker Angela Kissinger it matters "... because for once we can have a voice, and we have a seat at the table."

It would be a table populated by workers and fast food franchise owners, where they could talk about wages and working conditions. This bill not only affects the drive-thrus we're familiar with but also pizza parlors, coffee and ice cream shops and more.

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Those opposed called it a hidden tax by unelected council members. They suggested it will raise consumer prices, fast track automation and cause owners to cut jobs. But, to workers like Sandro Flores, it's about creating fairness. Says Flores, "I feel that as a worker it's so hard to get any complaint across, so it's about evening the playing field."