EMS workers planning strike to mirror fast food workers strike

Today, May 15, fast food workers are planning to walk out on their job as protest demanding they get paid $15 per hour. Many working in EMS don’t even make $15. So EMTs around the nation are calling for a $20 base wage for their profession.

Fast Food workers on Strike

Fast Food workers on Strike

Going on a traditional strike for an EMT is not exactly possible. Public safety issues prevent them form simply not showing up to work. So on May 20th EMTs the nation over will be doing a number of creative things to strike on duty.

At many EMS services arrangements are being made for medics to be ill on May 20th. Thus requiring other workers to be calling into work, and being paid overtime pay. At other EMS services EMTs who are sitting post will have signs announcing their wages and asking support for a pay increase.

One EMT told us. “I make $14.30 an hour. That is less than $30,000 a year. I have a college degree, and multiple national certifications. Yet I still need food stamps to eat. Why should a high school drop out, fast food worker make more than me?”

CallTheCops sent a reporter to our local McDonalds to talk to a striking worker. “I don’t think people understand the reality of fast food anymore. I have a college education. It is just that there are no jobs for Medieval German Literature majors right now. Everyone I work with has a liberal arts degree and can’t find a job. So we are stuck with fast food as our career until the economy can bring back jobs for liberal arts areas.”

National Registrar of Emergency Medical Workers, NREMW, director Vice Furnier says he supports higher pay for EMS workers. He though cannot publicly support the idea of a strike on the 20th demanding a $20 an hour wage.

“There is no reason why we can’t pay an EMT $20 an hour. The insurance companies are the ones paying the bills. They are making record profits. NREMW is suggesting all EMS providers raise their wages, and also raise the cost of transport. Just pass that extra expense on to the payee, it is simple math”.

No EMS service managers or owners were willing to go on record for this article. Most did indicate they would love to pay employees a better wage, but political factors keep them from doing as Mr. Furnier suggests.

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The staff at the CallTheCops are all people who now or at one time did work as police, firefighters, in EMS and even dispatch.