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Fast Food Industries: Surviving the Economy
Alicia Fernandez
Microeconomics Research Paper
January 5, 2013

Fast Food Industries: Surviving the Economy
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of going out and grabbing something to eat is burgers and fries. McDonald’s, Burger King, and KFC are the first place that my mind would wander to when choosing a place to grab a meal to go. These three places are part of an industry that has been around for centuries. Fast food industries have been around for centuries. They have played a part in structuring our economy in the workforce and the market place. They also impacted us, the consumers, on how we eat and manage our budget.
When it comes to employing teenagers, unskilled, or low skilled workers, fast food industries is the answer. Fast food industries are the top employers for low wage or minimum wage earners. To understand how fast food industries became one of the top employers for minimum wage earners, we first need to understand the industry. It does not require a lot of skills to work in one of fast food restaurants. Fast food industries focused on high volumes of preheated or precooked food that were served or prepared by an assembly line (Fast Food Industry Analysis 2013). This type of system gave fast food industries the opportunity to employ workers who are willing to work on minimum wage. For a long time fast food industries have been reaping the rewards of low wage earners. “Roughly 90% of the nation’s fast food workers receive no benefits and are scheduled to work only as needed. There are a few if any possibilities for advancement. Assistant managers, a misname designed to entrap workers who are looking to build a career at these chains, are also exploited, often forced to work 50, 60, or 70 hours a week, sometimes off the clock, with no serious opportunities for promotion

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