McDonald’s closes US offices ahead of layoffs

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Burger chain McDonald‘s Corp is closing its US offices for three days this week to inform corporate employees about layoffs as part of a broader company restructuring, according to reports.

The fast food chain asked US employees and some of the international staff to work from home on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday so it can pass on its decision about the redundancies virtually, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.

“During the week of April 3, we will communicate key decisions related to roles and staffing levels across the organization,” the company, according to WSJ.

The number of employees that the company intended to fire is, however, unclear. McDonald‘s is expected to begin announcing key decisions by Monday.

The chain had said in January that it planned to make “difficult” decision about changes in corporate staffing, with chief executive Chris Kepczinki adding “some jobs that are existing today are either going to get moved or those jobs may go away”.

The decision comes even as the outlet’s sales surged during the pandemic. The sales at McDonald’s US stores popped to 6.1 per cent in the third quarter last year, reported CNN, adding that the company’s share also rose to three per cent.

However, the consolidated revenue during the same period fell five per cent, reported the outlet.

“While there’s a lot for us to be proud of, you’ve also told us that there’s more we can do,” Mr Kempczinski had written to employees earlier in January. “We’re performing at a high level, but we can do even better.”

Additional reporting from the wires