Waging Change

Director Abby Ginzberg (Agents of Change) gives restaurant workers a voice in her empowering documentary. With Americans spending 50% of their food budget in restaurants, it's a bustling industry, generating $825 million in sales. Many servers, however, only make around $2.13 an hour, well below the federal minimum wage of $7.25, so the bulk of their income comes from tips (the assumption is that they make an average of $5.15 an hour in tips). Wardell Harvey, a server in New Orleans, works a second job in order to provide for his three children. Workers like Wardell are up against the National Restaurant Association, which aims to keep their wages low. Activists refer to them as "the other NRA." For 20 years, the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC) has been trying to secure a livable minimum wage for restaurant workers, while the Fight for $15 movement has been trying to secure a higher minimum for all workers, something the NRA has fought against, arguing that it will lead to layoffs and higher prices. "None of these fears play out," states New York Representative Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, a former bartender. Actresses Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin (9 to 5, Grace and Frankie), who both appear in the film, have also gotten involved in efforts to increase restaurant workers' wages. Since 70% of them are women, and since many have children, 50% receive public assistance. To add insult to injury, 90% have experienced sexual harassment. Ginzberg's film features a lot of these sorts of dispiriting facts and figures, but she also makes it clear that more restaurant workers today know their rights, are willing to fight for them, and are seeing results. Recommended. (K. Fennessy)