A group of trade unions have filed a complaint accusing McDonald’s of violating labour guidelines in relation to alleged “onging issues of gender-based violence and harassment in McDonald’s stores in the UK”.
It follows a BBC investigation in 2023 around working conditions at McDonald’s, after the fast food chain signed a legal agreement with the Equality and Human Rights Commission pledging to protect employees from sexual harassment. This came in response to concerns about the handling of complaints made by “staff in its UK restaurants”.
However, workers, some of which were as young as 17, brought forward claims to the BBC of harassment, racism, bullying and sexual assault.
The complaint made by five trade unions including the Bakers Union, the TUC and the Corporate Justice Coalition alleges there is “further evidence of persistent, deeply rooted gender-based discrimination” in McDonald’s restaurants, in violation of OECD guidelines.
They are now seeking assistance from the government unit, the NCP, which sits within the Department for Business and Trade, in offering a mediation process that will engage top McDonald’s management in the UK.
They stated key subjects they wish to discuss in mediation would include training, grievance mechanisms, tracking implementation, and addressing results.
After conducting an initial evaluation, the NCP has concluded the complaint warrants further consideration and it will offer voluntary mediation to both the trade unions and McDonald’s.
However, the Department for Business and Trade said its choice to accept the complaint and offer mediation is not a finding against McDonald’s. It added this does not mean it considers McDonald’s to have acted inconsistently with the OECD guidelines.
A McDonald’s spokesperson said: “We are aware of the NCP’s initial assessment and continue to engage constructively with the OECD process. We are reviewing the information and considering next steps.”
The Bakers, Food and Allied Workers’ Union president Ian Hodson said: “We welcome this step and have accepted mediation in good faith. McDonald’s must now engage meaningfully with workers and their unions to deliver real change.”
Samantha Dickinson, partner at employment law firm Mayo Wynne Baxter, said the latest allegations “place significant pressure on McDonald’s leadership to demonstrate it is taking employee safeguarding seriously and accelerate change”.
“Where serious concerns persist across franchises, responsibility cannot be deflected and decisive action from business leaders is essential.”
She said that establishing a “central compliance team with real enforcement authority across franchises would be a meaningful first step”.
“That team must be empowered to act independently, challenge senior management where necessary and ensure concerns are neither minimised nor concealed.”
Currently, many workers are not employed directly by McDonald’s due to its franchise system, with individual operators licensed to manage the stores and employ the staff.
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