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Fast food workers, who are among the lowest paid in the nation are once more walking off their jobs to protest their subsistence wages.

Workers in seven cities including New York, Chicago, Detroit, and Kansas City, are going on strike all week beginning this morning – they want greater pay and an end to retaliatory actions against union organizing activities.

The workers represent a wide sector of the fast food industry including McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy’s, and KFC. In some cities, retail workers at chains like Macy’s, Victoria’s Secret, and Dollar Tree are planning solidarity strikes.

The workers have received wide spread support from labor unions including SEIU and Change to Win, as well as inter-faith and religious organizations.

Supporting the workers’ cause is a new report by the National Employment Law Project whose research finds that just over 2% of fast food workers can expect to climb the corporate ladder into managerial positions. Fast food companies have often claimed their lowest paid positions are stepping stones toward better jobs.

GUEST: Kareem Starks, food handler at a McDonalds in Brooklyn, New York, leading organizing activities