McDonald’s boss says 29 workers fired over sexual harassment claims
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The UK boss of McDonald’s has said fresh sexual harassment allegations from staff at the fast food giant are “abhorrent” and that 29 workers have been fired. However, Alistair Macrow, chief executive of McDonald’s UK and Ireland, told MPs that the chain’s actions to deal with the problem are “working”.
It came after more than 700 people who were 19 or younger when working at McDonald’s joined a legal action against the company, with claims including discrimination, homophobia, racism, ableism and harassment. More than 450 McDonald’s restaurants have been implicated in the allegations so far.
One 19-year-old employee called Matt told a BBC investigation his colleagues were scared of going in to work and that managers would “touch up” some staff. Another former worker, who was identified as Claire, said a shift manager asked her for sex in exchange for extra shifts. She was 17 at the time and he was in his 30s, she said.
McDonald’s is one of Britain’s largest employers, with more than 170,000 people working in some 1,500 restaurants. Mr Macrow told MPs during a Business and Trade Committee session on Tuesday that the company has fired 29 workers over sexual harassment allegations in the past year.
A total of 75 allegations were made over the period, leading to 47 cases of disciplinary action, he said. The fast food chain had launched a new channel for employees to speak up over concerns about misconduct which had resulted in more dismissals, the boss added.
