TODAY'S NEWS

Make your voice heard by calling Wendy's corporate headquarters at 614-764-3100 to demand respect for farmworkers' health and safety!

The "Demanding Dignity for Farmworkers" Week of Action is underway and off to a great start, with action reports from across the country already rolling in.  With over two dozen actions on the map, the Fair Food Nation is making a statement, loud and clear: Not even a pandemic can dampen consumer demand for the protection of essential workers' fundamental human rights!  

Getting a head start on the Week of Action, the fierce young organizers of Movimiento Activista Social at the University of Idaho organized a lively Boycott Wendy's march late last week, which caught the attention of the campus newspaper, the Argonaut:

Student activists bring awareness to the Fair Food Program by boycotting Wendy’s

Protestors highlight important contributions farmworkers make to society

April 2, 2021

A Boycott Wendy’s rally held by Movimento Activista Social took place Thursday, bringing awareness to the Fair Food Program and why Wendy’s still declines to participate in it. 

Wendy’s, one of the five largest fast-food corporations in the country, is the only one who hasn’t joined the program, which works to ensure certain rights of farmworkers are not violated. 

University of Idaho student Pepe Maciel came to the rally to highlight the contributions farmworkers make to feed the rest of the country. 

“This is important because it impacts the community,” Maciel said. “There are a lot of views that make it seem like [farmworkers] are dispensable.” 

[...]

Here in Florida, organizers with Sustainable Souls of Tampa Bay took to the streets on Tuesday to debut freshly-painted banners made by farmworker leaders in Immokalee.  The group hit up not one, but two Wendy’s restaurants in The Big Guava, attracting lots of support from passersby and even Wendy's employees, who promised to pass on the community's message to company higher-ups. 

And as the Week of Action picks up steam, we need YOU to pick up the phone TODAY and tell Wendy’s CEO Todd Penegor to stop ignoring the fundamental human rights of the essential workers that have kept Wendy's business running throughout the global pandemic. With one voice, let's send Mr. Penegor the message that the only way to ensure farmworkers have access to protections from mistreatment and violence in Wendy's supply chain is by joining the gold standard for human rights, the Fair Food Program. 

Here's how to participate:

Call-in number: Dial 614-764-3100, press 3 and ask to leave a message for Todd Penegor

Here is a sample script:

“Hi, my name is _______ and I’m calling to leave a message for Mr. Todd Penegor in support of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers.  For over eight years, consumers have been asking Wendy's to join the Fair Food Program, the only human rights program proven to protect farmworkers from dangerous and abusive conditions in corporate supply chains. Wendy’s refusal to join the Fair Food Program is especially deplorable in light of the coronavirus pandemic, which has devastated farmworker communities at an alarming rate. It's time for Wendy's to stop ignoring the health and dignity of essential workers in its supply chain and join the Fair Food Program once and for all. 

Thank you for relaying this message.” 

Once you’re done, make sure to take part in the other two virtual actions taking place this week in support of the new Deliver With Dignity campaign, aimed at urging Uber Eats, Grubhub, DoorDash and Uber Eats to join the Wendy's Boycott:

  1. Sign the Deliver With Dignity petition: Help us amplify the growing call for Uber Eats, DoorDash, Grubhub, and Postmates to join the Wendy’s Boycott and take real leadership on the issue of human rights in our country’s food system by dropping Wendy's from their delivery options!

  2. Send an email to Uber Eats, DoorDash, Grubhub, and Postmates CEOs: After you sign the petition, take a moment to email the top executives of the nation's principal delivery service companies demanding they stop doing business with Wendy’s until the hamburger giant joins the Fair Food Program.

Check back in next week for a photo report from the Week of Action and more updates on the spring actions to come in the Wendy's campaign! 

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