Economics Behind Paying Fast Food Workers

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Striking fast food workers Thursday demanded a $15-an-hour minimum wage. But labor experts said those protests were not a simple call for higher pay.

Robert Bruno, a labor and employment professor at the University of Illinois, said it's an effort to significantly upgrade the way of life and bring retail workers into the middle class. He said a spike in wages might cause a modest price increase for fast food consumers, but better pay would also increase worker productivitiy and customer service.

Opponents of a higher minimum wage said it will make employers likely to fire workers or reluctant to hire more. But Chriss Tilly, a labor and unemployment professor at UCLA said there is no evidence that higher wages are a job killer. He said corporations could help owners of franchises by lowering their fees. Bruno said moving retail workers into the middle class not only would create more customers for business, but these better paid workers would also generate more tax revenue.

Jot Condie, CEO of the California Restaurant Association, said in a statement that restaurants usually operate on a profit margin between one and five percent. He also said Thursday's protesters are more likely to be labor activists and paid demonstrators rather than actual fast food workers.