McDonald’s ‘appalling’ sex for shifts scandal - ‘bum slaps and topless photos’
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More than 700 former McDonald's staff members are taking legal action against the fast-food giant after allegations of harassment came to light. The employees claimed managers oversaw a "toxic" work environment where teenage workers were sexually harassed. The McDonald's sex for shifts scandal comes just one year after its boss in the UK Alistair Macrow promised to clean up behaviour across the fast-food chain's restaurants. In November 2023, Mr Macrow issued an apology after similar claims were levelled at it and admitted he had received around 400 complaints.
One former employee , who first started working at McDonald's as a teenager, claimed older staff placed bets on having sex with new starters. She and other ex-employees also claimed managers touched them inappropriately. "It was soon clear the environment was really toxic," she said. "I saw older male staff making bets on who could sleep with the new starters and had older guys making comments about my body.".
The employee claimed she was also "slapped on the bottom" by her manager after she bent down. One employee at a West Midlands branch quit her job in 2023, claiming she had been touched by managers and faced sexual harassment from customers. Another former employee, who worked at the branch until 2023, told the BBC her manager would ask for sex in return for extra shifts, which she refused. She added: "You don't expect it to happen. It was totally inappropriate.".
She claimed bosses told her to "suck it up" when she raised the issue and another female worker, aged 20, described how a male manager sent her topless pictures. Some staff members also reported how managers asked younger staff how many people they had previously had sex with.
