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November 12, 2025 56 mins

"You wouldn't know the half of it."

🍔  What happens when McDonald's - a corporate behemoth so vast, so rich, so omnipresent that its logo is synonymous with globalisation and capitalism - is asked to compensate hourly workers for unpaid wages?

It screams.

That's where the SDA (Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association) - the union for fast food workers steps in. 

For years, they have been pursuing dozens of lawsuits against the fast food titan for a number of abuses, including: 


❌ Asking managers to take on unpaid duties (but they get a free frappé!)

❌ Denying workers legally-mandated paid breaks (but they get a soft drink!)

❌ Targeting employees for being union members

❌ Refusing to enter into negotiations under a union enterprise bargaining agreement


Josh Peak, Secretary of the SA and NT branch, shares the journey so far, including the incredible persistence of SDA members, the damning stories uncovered by the union, and McDonald's perplexing refusal to set things right.

#McDonalds #SDA #union #organise #fight #workersrights #Labor #labour #payandconditions #lawsuit #fastfood #retailworkers #bargaining #negotiating #podcast #PeterMalinauskas


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