Moo Cluck Moo, a burger-chicken-shake place that started just outside Detroit in April. There, employees start at wages of $12 per hour. It’s not exactly a living wage, but it’s significantly better than the $7.40 Michigan minimum wage.

Moorhouse, the founder says he believes he can turn a profit on low costs and higher wages because he has a different business model than the giants.

He also believes that paying better wages attracts workers who can work more effectively. “We’re much more efficient. Where we have four people on a shift, a McDonald’s might have seven or eight.”

  Tanjila Tabassum