Workers sue McDonald’s for discrimination, with one teen saying he faced ‘homophobic slurs’

Staff are suing burger chain McDonald’s, claiming abuse, discrimination and harassment, with one teen saying he faced homophobic slurs. 

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), the UK’s equality watchdog, is said to have heard about 300 incidents of abuse and harassment, even though McDonald’s has said it had undertaken “extensive work” over the past year to ensure members of staff are kept safe. 

The recent claims of sexual harassment, discrimination and bullying are all believed to have occurred after November 2023, when McDonald’s UK chief executive, Alistair Macrow, first appeared in front of parliament’s Business and Trade Committee. 

Macrow will face questions about employment rights from MPs again on Tuesday (7 January), after more than 700 current and former junior employees, who were aged 19 or younger when working at the fast-food chain, instructed law firm Leigh Day to take legal action, accusing McDonald’s of failing to protect them, the BBC reported.

More than 450 outlets are implicated in the claims.  

‘Hotbed of harassment’

Macrow’s appearance before the committee is regarding a separate matter, and he is set to be asked about “labour rights in their national operations and international supply chains”. Executives from Tesco, Temu and Shein are also to be quizzed.

Liam Byrne, the chairman of the Business and Trade Committee, described the situation as appalling.

“There is a clear pattern of abuse here that suggests that McDonald’s has become a hotbed of harassment and it’s incredibly serious,” he told the BBC. “And when the boss came before us last year, he promised [to] root out this problem. It’s quite clear he’s failed.” 

‘Degrading and humiliating’

One employee, known only as Matt, claimed he quit working at a branch in the Midlands in May last year because of a “toxic” work environment. He alleged that he was bullied for having a learning disability and an eye condition.

Another member of staff, who chose to go by the name of Alan, said he was subjected to “degrading and humiliating” verbal abuse by fellow workers in south west Scotland. “It’s just homophobic slurs a lot, sometimes to my face, sometimes behind my back,” he said. 

After reporting the issue, 19-year-old Alan was allegedly told by a senior manager that it was “just a bit of banter.”

McDonald’s signed an agreement with the EHRC in 2023, pledging to protect its staff from sexual harassment. 

McDonald’s respond to allegations

A spokesperson for the EHRC said: “We are actively working with McDonald’s to update our legal agreement in light of serious allegations raised by our work with the company, and the BBC investigation.”

A spokesperson for the burger chain, which has more than 1,450 restaurants across the UK and Ireland, told PinkNews: “Ensuring the 168,000 people [who] work in McDonald’s restaurants are safe is the most important responsibility for both us and our franchisees, and we have undertaken extensive work over the [past] year to ensure we have industry-leading practices in place to support this priority.

“Any incident of misconduct and harassment is unacceptable and subject to rapid and thorough investigation and action.”

McDonald’s has established a dedicated “investigations handling unit”, recruited its “first head of safeguarding” and a “digital channel” to allow employees to speak up “confidentially, at any time”.

The company has partnered with the EHRC to “ensure the robust measures we have in place are aligned with any updated guidance” the spokesperson went on to say, before claiming that and an anonymous survey showed that 92 per cent of employees [were] “comfortable speaking up, and 93 per cent believe management will act”. 

The spokesperson added: “We have repeatedly asked the BBC to provide details of the deeply troubling cases they have outlined, to allow us to carry out full investigations, which we have not received. We understand the majority of these cases took place more than 12 months ago.”