Essential Workers Were Heroes. Then We Asked for More.

I work in fast food — cleaning, grilling, smiling — and I know why you don’t want me to earn $15 an hour

Photo: John van Hasselt/Corbis via Getty Images

Past midnight, or at 2 a.m. on the weekends, our fast-food place closes its doors and we use the next hour to clean up and put everything back in its place. Recently, we got an additional task…