This Woman Worked Full-Time At McDonald's And Still Became Homeless

Kenya Banks, 43, a mother and full-time worker at McDonald's, was barely making ends meet when one day she started spontaneously bleeding during her drive-thru shift. After being diagnosed with a fibroid condition, her medical bills began piling up, and suddenly that $8.75 per hour was not enough. She became homeless, despite working 40 hours a week.

Banks told her story recently at a Fight for $15 protest that gathered outside a McDonald's shareholders meeting for what they are calling the "March on McDonald's."

"As the second largest employer in the world, McDonald's can step in where our state lawmakers have failed us," Banks wrote in an op-ed published by Civil Eats. "If we were paid $15 an hour and our right to join together in a union was recognized, McDonald's would lift up not just its own employees, but also those at other companies who follow its example. But instead, the company is driving a race to the bottom with low pay, stealing from workers' paychecks, sexually harassing women, ripping off taxpayers, and firing people for speaking out."

You can read the rest of Banks' story here.

Most minimum-wage workers are living beyond their means. Here, The Daily Meal explores the question: Can Fast Food Workers Afford to Eat Fast Food?