McDonald's is one of the largest fast food chains in the world. The vast majority of its restaurants operate as

franchisees Franchising is based on a marketing concept which can be adopted by an organization as a strategy for business expansion. Where implemented, a franchisor licenses some or all of its know-how, procedures, intellectual property, use of its busine ...

. The ownership and legal structures significantly impact the bargaining power and industrial relations between McDonald's and its workers.

Surveillance

In a 2021 Vice News report, it was revealed that McDonald's engaged in

corporate surveillance Corporate surveillance is the monitoring of a person or group's behavior by a corporation. The data collected is most often used for marketing purposes or sold to other corporations, but is also regularly shared with government agencies. It can be ...

of union organizers and McDonald workers in Chicago and London involved with the Fight for $15 campaign which is financed by the US based Service Employees International Union.

Australia

McDonald's Australia opened its first restaurant in Yagoona, a suburb of

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, in 1971. In late December 2018 and January 2019, Retail and Fast Food Workers Union (RAFFWU) began a major campaign in improving McDonald's workers conditions. The campaign revolved around the company's unlawful denial of employees' 10-minute breaks. Several McDonald's stores claimed that workers could either access drinking and toilet facilities at this time or take their allocated break. RAFFWU responded that this contravened the negotiated agreement and that workers had the right to drink water or go to the toilet whenever they wished. RAFFWU organized a "historic" protest in front of the Myer Centre McDonald's in Brisbane, demanding "basic human rights" like drinking water. In 2019, RAFFWU member Chiara Stains with the support of RAFFWU commenced litigation against Tantex holdings for breach of numerous workplace and human rights. In September 2020 the Federal Court ruled in favor of Chiara and RAFFWU and ruled that workers have the legal right to take toilet breaks and drink water, which Tantex had threatened to withhold in a breach of employee's workplace rights. Chiara receive A$800 in lost breaks and $1000 compensation, and the McDonald's franchisee was fined $82,000 in total.

Austria

McDonald's Austria has 4,000 workers across 80 restaurants as of 1999. 80% of these restaurants operate as franchisees. While workers were covered by collective agreements of HGPD union (which later merged into

Vida Vida means “life” in Spanish and Portuguese. It may refer to: Geography * Vida (Gradačac), village in Bosnia and Herzegovina * Lake Vida, Victoria Valley, Antarctica * U.S. settled places: ** Vida, Montana ** Vida, Oregon ** Vida, Missour ...

) since 1977 when McDonald's opened in Austria, McDonald's relationship with trade unions was non existent until 1994. In contrast to the works council system in Germany, Austrian labor law requires candidates to be EU citizens, which is a challenge for the ~70% migrant workers of McDonald's Austria. With no works council members, trade unions are not easily able to monitor compliance with existing collective agreements.

Denmark

has 4,000 workers across 80 restaurants. 90% of these restaurants operate as franchisees. When McDonald's arrived in Denmark in 1981, it engaged in industrial disputes with

Restaurant Trade Union The Restaurant Trade Union ( da, RestaurationsBranchens Forbund, RBF) was a trade union representing hospitality and food manufacturing workers in Denmark. The union was founded in 1990, when the Danish Brewery, Distillery and Mineral Water Worker ...

, before concluding a regional collective agreement in 1989. In theory, every restaurant could have union representatives and no cooperation committees (Danish equivalent to works council). As of 1999, only one restaurant had a union representative, and none had a cooperation committee.

Germany

employs 65,000 workers across its 1,470 restaurants. 1,313 (or 90%) of these restaurants are managed as franchisees. McDonald's Germany notably does not have any employee representatives on its Supervisory Board, despite having over 50,000 employees, well above the legal threshold of 2,000 employees specified in the Co-determination Act. This is because it is wholly registered in under the American McDonald's Corporation in Chicago, Illinois, which is permitted under the German-American Trade Agreement. Works Councils can be set up in any establishment in Germany with 5 or more employees. In theory, every single McDonald restaurant could have a Works Council. In 2002, 50 restaurants out of 1,150 had Works Councils. Since 1999, a company wide

Central Works Council A Central Works Council also called a General Works Council (; ''GBR'') must be established in German companies where two or more Works Councils exist within the same legal entity per BetrVG § 47(1). Sections § 47-53 of the Works Constitution A ...

(GBR) was established. The food and beverage trade union NGG alleges that McDonald's engages in

union busting Union busting is a range of activities undertaken to disrupt or prevent the formation of trade unions or their attempts to grow their membership in a workplace. Union busting tactics can refer to both legal and illegal activities, and can range ...

and retaliates against union affiliated Works Councils. Allegations include changing the ownership of union friendly restaurants into separate

holding companies A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...

(so they cannot participate in the GBR election) and setting up a parallel employer friendly Central Works Council, with the two competing for legal legitimacy.

Japan

McDonald's Japan was first established in

Ginza, Tokyo Ginza ( ; ja, 銀座 ) is a district of Chūō, Tokyo, located south of Yaesu and Kyōbashi, west of Tsukiji, east of Yūrakuchō and Uchisaiwaichō, and north of Shinbashi. It is a popular upscale shopping area of Tokyo, with numerous intern ...

district in 1971. The majority (70 percent) of McDonald's Japan restaurants are managed directly by the corporation with the remaining franchisees being operated overwhelmingly by former McDonald's employees as of 2012. The (''Nihon Makudonarudo Yunion'') was established on 15 May 2006 with 200 initial members, later on with the support of

RENGO The , commonly known as , is the largest national trade union center in Japan, with over six million members as of 2011.Rengo websitRengo brochure 2010-2011 Retrieved on July 6, 2012 It was founded in 1989 as a result of the merger of the Japan ...

, the Japanese Trade Union Confederation. Unpaid overtime, working conditions of full and part-time were some of the expressed factors for forming a union.

Overtime lawsuit

In 2005, Takano Hiroshi, a McDonald's store manager (''tenchō'') visited the community union Tokyo Kanrishoku Union (Tokyo Managers Union) to file a grievance against McDonald's over unpaid hundreds of overtime pay and employee misclassification. Shortly afterwards, labor inspectors visited several restaurants, including his worksite and mandated personnel improvements. Management subsequently accused Takano of alerting them. After failed negotiations, Takano's lawsuit was resolved in a court ruling in 2008, with back pay and overtime afforded to all ''tenchō'' employees. McDonald's resisted changing its practices fundamentally, for example providing overtime pay, but also reducing the base wages so that there is little net difference.

United Kingdom

McDonald's United Kingdom was first established in 1974. 115,000 workers operated across 1,249 restaurants as of 2017. The vast majority of employees have zero-hour contracts. In 1999, McDonalds Workers Resistance, a radical non-hierarchical worker's organisation, was formed at a McDonald's outlet in Glasgow, and remained active through to 2004. On 16 October 2002, they organized a "Global Day of Action" which saw labour action in Europe, North America and Oceania. The group's efforts were supported and promoted by the McLibel Support Campaign, which aimed to support

London Greenpeace London Greenpeace was an anarchist environmentalist activist collective that existed between 1972 and 2001. They were based in London, and came to international prominence when two of their activists refused to capitulate to McDonald's in the l ...

members who were sued by the company for slander due to distributing leaflets which were critical of the company. On 4 September 2017, the first strike actions were organized at two restaurants in Cambridge and

Crayford Crayford is a town and electoral ward in South East London, England, within the London Borough of Bexley. It lies east of Bexleyheath and north west of Dartford. Crayford was in the historic county of Kent until 1965. The settlement deve ...

with support of Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union.

United States

McDonald's first opened in California in 1940. It operates 14,300 franchises. None of the restaurants are unionized. Fight For $15 is the most active labor related campaign, and is funded partly by the SEIU. McDonald's franchise model and lack of joint-employer status means that each and every single individual restaurant would have to individually vote to unionize. The

NLRB The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is an independent agency of the federal government of the United States with responsibilities for enforcing U.S. labor law in relation to collective bargaining and unfair labor practices. Under the Natio ...

in October 2023 paved the way for more expansive definition of joint-employment that would force McDonald's to directly negotiate with trade unions.

References

External

{{McDonald's McDonald's McDonald's * Labor in Japan Labor relations in Germany Labour relations in Australia Labor relations in the United States Retail trade unions Labour relations in the United Kingdom Labour disputes in Denmark Labor in Austria