Although potentially less debilitating than a BART strike, hundreds fast food workers walked out of their low-paying jobs at McDonald's and Kentucky Fried Chicken locations in Oakland today to demand better pay and more work hours.

The strike is part of a groundswell that began last November but started picking up steam last month with workers demanding $15 per hour wages. Today's strikes were scheduled to follow the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington, but before the nation takes Monday off to celebrate Labor Day.

The strikes in Oakland began with the breakfast shift this morning at the McDonald's on 12th Street in West Oakland. (The location is also close to the sympathetic union workers at the Port of Oakland.)

Protests continued at a KFC location near Lake Merritt at 11 a.m. and are expected to wrap up at another McDonald's location near the Oakland Coliseum around 4:30 p.m. this afternoon. About 800 restaurant workers from local McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King, Taco Bell, El Pollo Loco, Jack in the Box and other chains were expected to take part in the East Bay strikes today. One of the co-organizers did not expect the strikes to completely to shut down each business.

NBC Bay Area was on the scene earlier today:

[Chron]
[NBCBayArea]