McDonald’s temporarily shuts US offices, prepares for layoffs: WSJ report

Last week, the Chicago-based fast-food chain asked its US employees and some international staff via an internal email to work remotely from Monday through Wednesday, so it could virtually inform corporate employees about the staffing decisions, the report said. The company also asked employees to cancel in-person meetings with vendors and outside parties at its headquarters, the report added.

“During the week of April 3, we will communicate key decisions related to roles and staffing levels across the organization,” the company said in a message seen by The Journal.

McDonald’s employs more than 150,000 people globally in corporate roles in its restaurants of which 70% are located outside the US.

In January, McDonald’s announced that it intended to implement “difficult” changes to its corporate staffing levels by April as part of its comprehensive strategic plan for the burger chain.

Chief executive Chris Kempczinski in an interview in January had said that he expected to save money through the workforce assessment, but did not have a specific dollar amount or job count that he aimed to cut at that time, the report adds.

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“Some jobs that are existing today are either going to get moved or those jobs may go away,” said Kempczinski.In recent years, McDonald’s has undergone multiple rounds of layoffs. In 2018, the fast-food chain announced its intention to reduce its management staff to become “more dynamic, nimble, and competitive.” The company said that the layoffs would be implemented as part of a $500 million scheme to decrease administrative costs by the end of 2019.

The layoff wave has swept not only startups and mid-sized firms, but also big tech companies such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Google parent Alphabet, among others.

ETtech

So far, 551 tech companies have laid off 1,65,622 employees in 2023, according to tracking site Layoffs.fyi.

Indeed, Twilio, LinkedIn, Zoom, Dell, Pinterest and Tinder owner Match are among companies that have joined the layoff bandwagon more recently in a bid to rein in the costs amid a looming global economic downturn.