Leading
restaurant chain needs to treat workers right
Abby
McGill, International Labor Rights Forum
 |
| Leading Darden brands |
Darden
Restaurants, the owners of well-known eateries including Olive Garden and
Longhorn Steakhouse, could provide a living wage of $15 an hour for all its
employees for about 35 cents more per meal served.
Yet 20 percent of
Darden’s 150,000 employees make only $2.13 an hour (the U.S. tipped
minimum wage rate). Low wages make it hard for many of Darden’s workers to meet
their families' basic needs, let alone afford healthy and sustainable food.
Known
for gut-busting portions at rock-bottom prices, Darden also relies on sourcing
unsustainable ingredients, including factory-farmed meat and dairy that pollute
the environment and provide no consideration for the working conditions of the
people who produce and package it.
That’s
why we want you to join environmental, public health and worker organization
allies to urge Darden to adopt a
Good Food Menu that would foster environmental sustainability, good nutrition
and a valued workforce!
With
more than 1500 restaurants, serving 320 million meals every year, Darden’s
purchasing and menu decisions have a huge impact on people’s health and our
environment.
A
healthier and sustainable food system cannot be achieved without
fairness and dignity for the people who make and serve our food. If Darden, the
largest full service restaurant company in the United States, improved
conditions for its workers and demanded better practices from its suppliers, it
could change the entire industry — encouraging wages throughout the food sector
that support working people and their families.
Darden
will respond to what customers want. It’s up to us to demand they do better.
