McDonald's workers from south east London stores have joined a global call for fair pay for fast food employees, including one Crayford employee who struggles to pay his bills going on strike for the fourth time yesterday.

A group of workers from six London McDonald stores, including those in Deptford, Catford and Crayford, gathered at Wandsworth Road before heading to Downing Street where they delivered their demands to Number 10.

The 'McStrike', part of a global day of action for fast food workers, saw UK employees calling for £15 an hour wages, an end to youth rates, notice of shifts four weeks in advance and choice of guaranteed hours of up to 40 hours a week.

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Lewis Baker from the Crayford McDonald's said he was striking against low pay for the fourth time because he struggles to pay his bills.

The 29-year-old, who has worked for the company for six years, told the PA: "There are a lot of workers who are struggling to pay their bills and get by day to day.

"We don't have set hours, so we don't always earn enough to pay the bills.

"If we got £15 an hour, it would have a massive impact - I would be able to afford to pay my rent, to pay my bills, go on holiday and have some kind of work-life balance."

Mr Baker, who earns £8.80 an hour, added that as workers make them a massive profit, McDonalds "should pay us a real living wage that we can actually afford to live on."

Shane Niblett, 20, who works at McDonald's in Catford, echoed Baker: “I’m going on strike because I don’t believe that people should be earning £6.85 an hour, it’s a complete joke and you can’t make a stable living out of it.

"£15 an hour will change our lives in a very big way... It’ll mean I can be myself without having to put a mask on just to make them happy."

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Shadow chancellor John McDonnell also joined the workers at Downing Street to challenge their "poverty wages."

He commented that Labour would offer a £10-an-hour real living wage, and would take on corporations such as McDonald's as "an end to in-work poverty will help millions of low-paid workers across the country."

A McDonald's spokesperson assured customers that all six London stores still opened on Tuesday, stating that the strikers "potential actions do not represent our people."

He said: "We are extremely disappointed that a very small number of our people in just a handful of our restaurants are considering industrial action."