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"McJob" is a
slang
Slang is vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in spoken conversation but avoided in formal writing. It also sometimes refers to the language generally exclusive to the members of particular in-gro ...
term for a low-paying, low-prestige
dead-end job
A dead-end job is a job where there is little or no chance of career development and advancement into a better position. If an individual requires further education to progress within their firm that is difficult to obtain for any reason, this can ...
that requires few
skills
A skill is the learned ability to act with determined results with good execution often within a given amount of time, energy, or both. Skills can often be divided into domain-general and domain-specific skills. For example, in the domain of wo ...
and offers very little chance of advancement. The term "McJob" comes from the name of the
fast-food restaurant
A fast-food restaurant, also known as a quick-service restaurant (QSR) within the industry, is a specific type of restaurant that serves fast food, fast-food cuisine and has minimal Foodservice#Table service, table service. The food served ...
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...
, but is used to describe any low-status jobregardless of employerwhere little
training
Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or Physical fitness, fitness that relate to specific practicality, useful Competence (human resources), competencies. Training has specific goals of improving on ...
is required, staff
turnover is high, and workers' activities are
tightly regulated by managers.
History
"McJob" was in use at least as early as 1986, according to the ''
Oxford English Dictionary
The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a com ...
'' (OED), which defines it as "An unstimulating, low-paid job with few prospects, esp. one created by the expansion of the service sector." Lack of job security is common.
The term was coined by sociologist
Amitai Etzioni
Amitai Etzioni (; Werner Falk; born 4 January 1929) is a German-born Israeli-American sociologist, best known for his work on socioeconomics and communitarianism. He founded the Communitarian Network, a non-profit, non-partisan organization ...
, and appeared in ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' on August 24, 1986 in the article "McJobs are Bad for Kids". The term was popularized by
Douglas Coupland
Douglas Coupland (born 30 December 1961) is a Canadian novelist, designer, and visual artist. His first novel, the 1991 international bestseller '' Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture'', popularized the terms ''Generation X'' and ''McJ ...
's 1991 novel ''
Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture'',
which described a "McJob" as a "low-pay, low-prestige, low-dignity, low benefit, no-future job in the service sector. Frequently considered a satisfying career choice by people who have never held one."
[Coupland, Douglas. ''Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture''. St Martin's Press, 1991. p. 5 ]
The term appears in the 1994 novel ''
Interface
Interface or interfacing may refer to:
Academic journals
* ''Interface'' (journal), by the Electrochemical Society
* ''Interface, Journal of Applied Linguistics'', now merged with ''ITL International Journal of Applied Linguistics''
* '' Inte ...
'' (by
Neal Stephenson
Neal Town Stephenson (born October 31, 1959) is an American writer known for his works of speculative fiction. His novels have been categorized as science fiction, historical fiction, cyberpunk, postcyberpunk, and baroque.
Stephenson's work exp ...
and
George Jewsbury
George F. Jewsbury (born November 26, 1941) is an American historian who has collaborated on several textbooks in the ''Civilization: Past & Present'' series. He joined authors T. Walter Wallbank, Alastair M. Taylor, and Nels M. Bailkey, begin ...
) to describe in the abstract positions that are briefly held and underpaid. In the 1999 British film ''
Human Traffic
''Human Traffic'' is a 1999 British-Irish-Welsh independent coming of age comedy drama film written and directed by Justin Kerrigan. It is a cult film of the Cool Cymru era of arts in Wales.
The film explores themes of coming of age, drug and ...
'', one character's work in a generic burger outlet is referred to as a McJob.
In the face of objections from McDonald's, the term "McJob" was added to ''
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary
''Webster's Dictionary'' is any of the English language dictionaries edited in the early 19th century by American lexicographer Noah Webster (1758–1843), as well as numerous related or unrelated dictionaries that have adopted the Webster's n ...
'' in 2003. In an open letter to Merriam-Webster, McDonald's
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
,
James Cantalupo denounced the definition as a "slap in the face" to all restaurant employees, and stated that "a more appropriate definition of a 'McJob' might be 'teaches responsibility'". Merriam-Webster responded that "
hey stood
Hey or Hey! may refer to:
Music
* Hey (band), a Polish rock band
Albums
* Hey (Andreas Bourani album), ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014
* Hey! (Julio Iglesias album), ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the ti ...
by the accuracy and appropriateness of
heir
Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Officiall ...
definition."
On 20 March 2007, the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
reported that the
UK arm of McDonald's planned a public
petition
A petition is a request to do something, most commonly addressed to a government official or public entity. Petitions to a deity are a form of prayer called supplication.
In the colloquial sense, a petition is a document addressed to some offici ...
to have the OED's definition of "McJob" changed. Lorraine Homer from McDonald's stated that the company feels the definition is "out of date and inaccurate". McDonald's UK CEO, Peter Beresford, described the term as "demeaning to the hard work and dedication displayed by the 67,000 McDonald's employees throughout the UK". The company would prefer the definition to be rewritten to "reflect a job that is stimulating, rewarding ... and offers skills that last a lifetime".
These comments run counter to the principle that dictionaries
simply record linguistic usage rather than judge it, and that dropping the entry for "McJob" would be a precedent for
bowdlerising
Expurgation, also known as bowdlerization, is a form of censorship that involves purging anything deemed noxious or offensive from an artistic work or other type of writing or media.
The term ''bowdlerization'' is a pejorative term for the practi ...
definitions of other derogatory terms.
McDonald's attempted to get all of its workers to sign the petition but many refused on the grounds that the current definition is accurate despite the company's complaint.
During the aforementioned arguments that broke out when
Merriam-Webster
Merriam-Webster, Inc. is an American company that publishes reference books and is especially known for its dictionaries. It is the oldest dictionary publisher in the United States.
In 1831, George and Charles Merriam founded the company as ...
included "McJob" in its new edition, McDonald's officials implied the company might bring a
lawsuit
-
A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...
against the dictionary based on this trademark issue, but never did so. McDonald's disputes that its jobs are poor, because the company has been nominated for employee awards that are created by employers. However, this was contradicted in the outcome of the UK
McLibel court case, in which the judges ruled that it was fair to say that McDonald's employees worldwide "do badly in terms of pay and conditions".
The term "McJOBS" was registered as a
trademark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others ...
by McDonald's in 1984 as a name and image for "training handicapped persons as restaurant employees". The trademark lapsed in February 1992, and was declared canceled by the
United States Patent and Trademark Office
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that serves as the national patent office and trademark registration authority for the United States. The USPTO's headquarters are in Alexa ...
. Following the October 1992 publication of ''Generation X'' in paperback, McDonald's restored the trademark.
Accuracy of the term
There are often wide variations in how workers are actually treated depending on the local franchise owner. Some employees start out in
entry-level
An entry-level job is a job that is normally designed or designated for recent graduates of a given discipline and typically does not require prior experience in the field or profession. These roles may require some on-site training. Many entry ...
McJobs and later become assistant managers or managers, continuing to work at the same franchise for many years; however this is the exception rather than the norm. McDonald's advertises that its former CEO,
Jim Skinner
James Alan Skinner (born 1944) is an American business executive. He was the executive chairman of Walgreens Boots Alliance. He was the vice chairman and Chief executive officer, CEO of McDonald's Corporation.
Early life
James Alan Skinner was b ...
, began working at the company as a regular restaurant employee, and that 20 of its top 50 managers began work as regular crew members.
According to
Jim Cantalupo
James Richard Cantalupo (November 14, 1943 – April 19, 2004) was an American businessman. He served as chairman and chief executive officer of McDonald's Corporation until his sudden death by heart attack at the age of 60.
Life
Cantalupo was ...
, former
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
of McDonald's, the perception of fast-food work being boring and mindless is inaccurate, and over 1,000 of the people who now own McDonald's
franchises
Franchise may refer to:
Business and law
* Franchising, a business method that involves licensing of trademarks and methods of doing business to franchisees
* Franchise, a privilege to operate a type of business such as a cable television p ...
began behind the counter. Because McDonald's has over 400,000 employees and high turnover, Cantalupo's contention has been criticized as being invalid, working to highlight the exception rather than the rule.
In 2006, McDonald's undertook an advertising campaign in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
to challenge the perceptions of the ''McJob''. The campaign, developed by Barkers Advertising and supported by research conducted by
Adrian Furnham
Adrian Frank Furnham (born 3 February 1953) is a South African-born British BPS chartered occupational psychologist and chartered health psychologist. He is currently an adjunct professor at BI Norwegian Business School and professor at Unive ...
, professor of psychology at
University College London
, mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £143 million (2020)
, budget = ...
, highlighted the benefits of working for the organization, stating that they were ''"Not bad for a McJob"''. So confident were McDonald's of their claims that they ran the campaign on the giant screens of
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
's
Piccadilly Circus.
[Not bad for a McJob?]
" Management Issues. June 8, 2006
See also
*
Contingent work
Contingent work, casual work, or contract work, is an employment relationship with limited job security, payment on a piece work basis, typically part-time (typically with variable hours) that is considered non-permanent. Although there is less jo ...
*
Critique of work
Critique of work or critique of labour is the critique of, and wish to abolish, work ''as such'', and to critique what the critics of works deem wage slavery.
Critique of work can be existential, and focus on how labour can be and/or feel meaning ...
*''
Maxime, McDuff & McDo
''Maxime, McDuff & McDo'' is a 2002 documentary film by Magnus Isacsson that shows the attempt to unionize a McDonald's restaurant in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They were successful, but McDonald's quickly shut down the franchise after the union w ...
'', a 2002 French documentary about unionization of a McDonald's in Montreal
*
McWords
A McWord is a word containing the prefix ''Mc-'', derived from the first syllable of the name of the McDonald's restaurant chain. Words of this nature are either official marketing terms of the chain (such as '' McNugget''), or are neologisms des ...
*''
My Secret Life on the McJob'', a 2006 book describing management lessons learned by the author, Jerry Newman, when he worked undercover in several fast food venues
*
Permatemp
Permatemp is a U.S. term for a Temporary work#Temporary workers, temporary employee who works for an extended period for a single staffing client. The word is a portmanteau of the words ''Permanent employment, permanent'' and ''temporary''.
Ther ...
*
Poverty
Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in ...
*
Working poor
The working poor are working people whose incomes fall below a given poverty line due to low-income jobs and low familial household income. These are people who spend at least 27 weeks in a year working or looking for employment, but remain und ...
*
Zero-hour contract
A zero-hour contract is a type of employment contract between an employer and an employee whereby the employer is not obliged to provide any minimum number of working hours to the employee. The term 'zero-hour contract' is primarily used in th ...
, some businesses participate in, whereby work is not guaranteed, but employees must be available for work in short notice, unlike contingent work (or casual contract), where employees must be given ample notice, and have the right to refuse guaranteed minimum hours of work.
References
External links
McJob status hard to breakThe flip side of a McJobMcDonald's New TV Ad Fights 'McJob' ImageMcDonald's 'A-level' is launched
{{Employment
McDonald's
McWords
Food services occupations
Ethically disputed working conditions
Community organizing
Employment classifications
Labor disputes
Labor relations
Pejorative terms
Feminism and social class
1980s neologisms
Criticism of fast food