A McDonald’s employee in the Midlands has alleged he was bullied due to his learning disability and an eye condition, amidst a fresh harassment scandal engulfing the fast-food giant. Over 700 young workers, who were 19 or younger during their tenure at the chain, have joined a lawsuit as McDonald’s faces a barrage of new claims.
The allegations surfaced on Tuesday, January 7, as UK chief executive Alistair Macrow was set to be grilled by MPs on employment rights. More than 450 McDonald’s outlets are implicated in the accusations to date, which include charges of discrimination, homophobia, racism, ableism, and harassment.
One 19 year old worker named Matt disclosed to a BBC probe that his colleagues feared going to work and that some staff members were inappropriately touched by managers. Another ex-employee, identified as Claire, recounted how a shift manager propositioned her for sex in exchange for more hours.
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She was 17 at the time, while he was in his 30s. Additionally, a 19 year old man currently employed at a McDonald’s branch reported: “I’ve had to deal with homophobic comments from managers and crew members – I feel as though I can’t speak to any managers about it.
“My manager said if I can’t deal with it, I should just leave the job. Things said to me shouldn’t be said to anyone, I’ve been called names like ‘faggot’. These comments make me feel really uncomfortable – I hate working there,” reports Birmingham Live.
A former employee named Matt, who quit his job at a McDonald’s outlet in the Midlands last year, revealed to the BBC that he was bullied due to his learning disability and an eye condition. He also observed managers and staff exhibiting racist behaviour towards other employees, and bosses making inappropriate physical contact with staff.
Leigh Day law firm has received claims from a young worker who was persistently harassed for sex, and another who was asked by their manager about their sexual history. One claim highlighted a manager who would touch young staff inappropriately during their shifts, while another reported a manager making racist remarks questioning if employees would steal from the company based on their origin.
Another young worker claimed they heard their disability being mocked as ridiculous. McDonald’s, one of the UK’s largest employers with over 170,000 staff across 1,450 outlets, states that the average age of its workforce is 20.
These allegations follow a separate BBC report in 2023 where workers spoke out about sexual assault, harassment, racism, and bullying at work. This led McDonald’s to hire consultants from Price Waterhouse Cooper (PwC) to audit its restaurants.
Lawyers from Leigh Day believe that junior crew members and staff at McDonald’s could be eligible to file claims, regardless of whether they have directly experienced harassment. The statement indicated that they could have been subjected to a culture of inappropriate behaviour, and called on any current employees under 20 to join the legal action. Paul Nowak, general secretary at the Trades Union Congress, stated that Mr Macrow “has serious questions to answer. This investigation has exposed how sexual harassment and insecure work can go hand in hand.”
McDonald’s operates using a franchise model, meaning local managers are responsible for hiring staff. Approximately 89 per cent of British workers at McDonald’s are on zero-hours contracts.
Mr Nowak further commented that these contracts “create a huge imbalance of power in the workplace that leaves workers vulnerable to predatory bosses”. Mr Macrow was scheduled to appear before the Business Committee of MPs in a session on employment rights on Tuesday afternoon.
A spokesperson for McDonald’s said the company had undertaken “extensive work” to make its workplaces safer. “Any incident of misconduct and harassment is unacceptable and subject to rapid and thorough investigation and action,” they stated.
They mentioned that the company had established a dedicated team to address the issue, which had “already rolled out company-wide programmes to improve safeguarding, drive awareness and enhance training”. “We are confident we are taking significant and important steps to tackle the unacceptable behaviours facing every organisation.”
A recent anonymous employee survey revealed that 92 per cent of its workers are “now comfortable speaking up”, they added. The firm stated that it presented its staff with the option of either zero-hours or guaranteed hours contracts.