Brexit, according to the latest edition of Wetherspoon News, is a route to “democracy and free trade”, to “equal freedom and prosperity”.

Following an appraisal of the implications of a no-deal Brexit, JD Wetherspoon founder Tim Martin has informed attentive Fosters drinkers across the country that Britain crashing out of the EU would be no greater trouble than his company’s triumphant substitution of German Jägermeister with English Strika. Any other spin, he claims, is “just another pro-EU shaggy dog story” desperately cobbled together by a “metropolitan elite”. You’re even invited to his once-in-a-lifetime countrywide Brexit tour were any of your doubts to persist.

Cards on the table. I’m a left-wing, London-based Remainer. I’m presumably a self-elected member of this “metropolitan elite” in Martin’s eyes. But that is rather hard to square with the poverty wages he pays me to work the bar at one of his central London pubs.

Like a lot of hospitality jobs, work at Wetherspoons is, in my opinion, underpaid and undervalued. It’s an intense and stressful job – preparing drinks and food and unclogging toilets for hours on end. Our breaks are short and unpaid. Zero-hour contracts are open to abuse by managers who have no obligation to give us enough work to survive on. Being sick means either working through the flu or losing a day’s pay and, once a set number of “trigger” days is hit, perhaps your job too.

We work unsocial hours, rarely seeing friends, but are continuously confronted with drunk, abusive and sometimes violent customers who’ll mindlessly dehumanise you into a mechanical pint pourer. You might say this is just the price you pay for working in a pub, and I am grateful to have a job of any sort, but it is also, I think, a depressing vision of how crude, mercantile Brexiteers like Martin see the world.

McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay Show all 24 1 / 24 McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay Strikers want to highlight the issue of “poverty pay” and insecure working in the UK hospitality industry. Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay The hospitality sector employs around 4.5 million people – ten per cent of the UK’s working population. But its workers have not traditionally organised to demand better pay and conditions, making the current strike significant, despite its small scale Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay A growing movement of low-paid workers, particularly in the fast-food industry, has come together over recent years, catalysed by the Fight for $15 campaign in the US Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay A McDonald’s spokesperson said the company was “disappointed” to hear about planned UK strikes and said the numbers of people involved represented an “extremely small proportion” of its 120,000 workforce. Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay “This is against a backdrop of more people choosing to join our business, with more than 1,000 new managers recruited in the past year.” Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay Shadow chancellor John McDonnell backed the action and reiterated Labour's plan to give all workers a living wage of £10 an hour. "I am giving my support to the striking workers in Wetherspoons, TGI Fridays and McDonald's today," he said. "These are workers that have been ignored by their employers and are simply asking for a wage they can live on and the same basic rights at work we should all be entitled to." Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay Wetherspoon spokesperson Eddie Gershon said rates of pay at the pub chain were increasing as they are in the economy generally. “We are also moving to the same rate for 18-21s as we already have for over 21s from 5 November 2018,” he said. “In addition, we are putting up the rate of pay. In the last financial year we paid record monthly bonuses and free shares of £43 million, equivalent to about 50 per cent of our net profits.” Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou McDonald's, Wetherspoons and TGIs workers strike over pay JD Wetherspoon, McDonald's and TGI Fridays stage walkouts in a pay dispute. Protests were being held in several UK cities, along with a rally in London. The industrial action was organised in tandem with strikes by fast-food workers on four continents. UberEats, JD Wetherspoon, TGI Friday's and McDonald's have all defended their record on pay. The rally in London's Leicester Square Angela Christofilou Angela Christofilou

In October, two Wetherspoon outlets in Brighton joined a series of hospitality strikes in demand of union recognition and a £10 hourly wage. It’s a fight that needs expanding across the country. But the choice most employees see is to put up with the conditions or leave; and with staff turnover so absurdly high, most seem to go for the latter.

It appears Wetherspoons has been doing rather well out of our working conditions. Last year the company pulled in £89m in pre-tax profits; and Martin himself has accrued a tidy estimated net wealth of almost £500m. As a full-time bar associate in central London I might put through £4,000 in weekly sales – and receive less than a tenth of that in my wages. The irony is that if Brexit leads to rising staff costs, as it well might, then the Martin model looks fragile. Today he revealed he expects profits to fall despite rising sales.

While I work long hours for meagre rewards, I believe Tim Martin is exploiting his position at the head of a huge high-profile company to advocate for a Brexit which threatens to make working conditions worse, never mind the evidence that the Brexit debate has already led to a surge in racist and queerphobic hate crimes.

The financial crisis and a Conservative government have combined to slash away at our public services. I fear that the kind of no-deal Brexit my boss advocates promises to accelerate austerity to rates we might have previously deluded ourselves were unthinkable.

There is a conspicuous absence from Martin’s propaganda of the implications for the migrant workers who keep his company running. With Tories celebrating the end of free movement, and Labour failing to stand up for it, it’s essentially guaranteed that any Brexit will lead to the greatest expansion of border controls in generations.

A large proportion of Wetherspoons’ 30,000+ staff are EU nationals and yet Martin himself appears to be utterly incoherent on the issue of migrant workers’ rights. In one breath, he salutes EU citizens’ contributions to the UK’s social, cultural and economic life, and in the next he pontificates in favour of an Australia-style “points system” that prioritises the kind of “skilled” and “professional” work that, if enacted, would attack the right of his own employees to even work here.

Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Show all 16 1 / 16 Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Britain Before Brexit: Greater London West Croydon A police van’s speed and siren bring people to shop windows, keen to watch the drama of the public space, curious to know if a crime has been committed and lining up like townsfolk in a western movie Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Trafalgar Square Morning light illuminates a typical scene outside the National Gallery. Everyone interacts with a phone, held in hands and gazed at, or held in the hands of others and posed for. The figure in the background is on another level, an exception, an anomaly Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London East Croydon A dispute about shoplifting outside a store’s entrance, conducted in French, revolving around a gold watch Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Bank The Chinese flag hangs over the centre of British finance, its red blush bringing luck to the morning. St Paul’s Cathedral occupies the blue distance Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Bond Street Three pairs of legs and feet in different states, playing different roles in the heart of British commerce: one clothed, striding purposefully; another of white plastic, made to model and convince; the last barefoot, not standing Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Upton Park Plastic bags dress naked trees, only partially, flaying in the wind, torn and damp, leaving most of the branches exposed, like black cracks spreading across thin ice, across the tower block of civilisation Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Westminster A pro-Brexit protester walks past the Houses of Parliament and the anti-Brexit protesters camped opposite. Both have appropriated the Union Jack, claim to be acting in the national interest and to be patriotic. Caught in between are child and mother, who photographs the ‘home of democracy’, or herself Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Islington A new tube map is put up outside the station, hands reaching high, stretching upwards, as if in worship of the security camera, in awe of surveillance itself, one of London’s most valued currencies Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Tooting Broadway A huge bingo hall hidden away from the high street, populated sparsely by a few players. There’s so much concentration and focus. I can’t decide if they’re there to play, to win, to hide, to escape, or to kill time Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London The Mall Horses are tourist attractions in certain parts of London, especially when they’re dressed in military regal attire and carrying a soldier or a guard. Tourists pose alongside them for selfies and generic holiday snaps, which when taken daily in their millions, re-enforce a global image of London as a hub of ceremonial pomp and ritual Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Tooting Bec An anonymous critique of an advert’s imagery, wheeling out the age-old distinction between lust and love, sex and companionship, surface and interior, shallowness and depth, superficial and real Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Wandsworth A declaration of the existence of community is damaged and broken. A sign portraying strength and solidarity looks weak and sad and lonely when it begins to crumble and fall apart Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Buckingham Palace I watch a lineup of paparazzi photographers outside the palace. They wait to pounce upon blacked out windows concealing guests to the Queen’s Christmas lunch. They appear bored and unenthusiastic, as if photography were for them but a chore that flashes light on celebrity faces Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London St Paul’s The city is reflected by its values: a relentless list of imperative commands to become something else, some better version, upgraded; a message that says we need to acquire to improve; a hard-hitting reminder of your inadequacy and incompleteness Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Colliers Wood A laundrette on the peripheries, zone 3, where a man sits below another London – Piccadilly Circus – with its giddy movements and interactions, its colours and vibrancy, where life is shaken up and spun, as if in one of the washing machines below, rotating and loud, everything inside blurred Richard Morgan/The Independent Britain Before Brexit: Greater London Uxbridge A building site concealed with an image of what will be. A common way to cover up the messy process of (de)construction. The housing development claims to be affecting time and space, moving people into new places and better futures, fundamentally altering their existence Richard Morgan/The Independent

It is nothing short of perverse that it’s the organisation’s bar associates – the lowest-paid and most migrant-heavy layer of the workforce – who are responsible for distributing Martin’s politics in pubs up and down the country. Through content in the magazine, on leaflets and even on beer mats, we are essentially instructed to propagandise for a policy that promises to make our livelihoods more precarious.

Brexit has always been driven by the central xenophobic lie that blames the decline of living standards on foreign workers. Yet when you contrast the extreme wealth of Wetherspoon’s shareholders with what I see as poverty wages granted to all its employees, it’s all too clear in my mind that it’s not migrants who drive down wages, it’s exploitative bosses.

I’m opposed to Brexit because I’ve no time for racist lies or those willing to triangulate around them. Low-paid hourly workers depend on our public services more than anyone else in society, but ending freedom of movement will not bring one single child out of poverty.

That’s to say nothing of the millions of EU nationals – including thousands of my fellow workers – who face uncertainty, at best, and deportation at worst. And there’s the theft of the rights we all face, to live and study and love and work in a world far greater than the tiny patch of land into which we were born.

I want a society that’s run in the interests of the people who keep it running – and that’s as true for Wetherspoons as for the country at large. We need all employers to be mandated to pay a real living wage, we need workplace democracy, and we need a tax system which targets those who can best afford it – like Tim Martin – to fund health, education and childcare. It is utterly maddening that my boss uses his workers to spread a parade of facile soundbites that go against all of this to a captive audience of Wetherspoons drinkers.