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McDonald’s legally pledges to protect staff after string of sexual harassment complaints

The fast food chain has signed a legal agreement with the equality watchdog.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 8th February 2023

McDonald’s has pledged to better protect staff at its UK restaurants after a string of sexual harassment complaints.

The fast food chain has this week signed a legal agreement with the equality watchdog that commits it to a number of measures to better protect workers in the UK after the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union (BFAWU) claimed back in 2019 that more than 1,000 sexual harassment complaints had been logged.

The union alleged that there was a “toxic culture” at UK McDonald’s branches in the wake of strikes at restaurants in several US cities on the same issue back in 2018, and the company’s failure to sufficiently deal with the matter.

The legal agreement with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) includes communicating to staff a “zero tolerance” approach to sexual harassment.

McDonald’s pledges to better protect staff at its UK restaurants after a string of sexual harassment complaints / Credit: McDonald’s

On top of this, the agreement – which applies to all UK franchised restaurants, but excludes Ireland and the US – also requires McDonald’s to provide anti-harassment training to its staff, and to improve policies to better respond to any complaints made.

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The chain’s UK chief executive Alistair Macrow stressed that harassment and abuse “have no place in our society or at McDonald’s”.

Addressing the new legal commitment, Mr Macrow said: “As one of the UK’s leading employers, the safety and wellbeing of our people is our absolute priority [and] it is hugely important to me that everyone in our organisation feels safe, respected and included at all times – this is core to the values of our business.

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“We already have a strong track record in this area, and I now welcome the opportunity to work with the EHRC to further strengthen this.”

A union representing workers claimed in 2019 that more than 1,000 sexual harassment complaints had been logged / Credit: McDonald’s

Ian Hodson, national president of the BFAWU, added: “It’s shameful that one of the richest corporations on the planet doesn’t take sexual harassment seriously until we raise it [but] I pay tribute to all our members who have spoken out on this issue and encourage McDonald’s to work with us in ending sexual harassment.”

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EHRC chairwoman Baroness Kishwer Falkner said that by McDonald’s signing the agreement, she hopes the chain can “set an example for others to follow, whether in the hospitality industry or elsewhere.”

Featured Image – McDonald’s UK (via Twitter)

News

Today is your last day to register to vote in Greater Manchester’s local and mayoral elections

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Today is your last day to register to vote in Greater Manchester’s local and mayoral elections, as the deadline ends at midnight tonight.

With less than a month to go until the big election day arrives, residents across the Greater Manchester region are being urged to make sure they’re registered to vote and have their voter photo ID ready, so that they’re able to head to the polls and have their say on who makes the important decisions that affect them.  

In order to vote in the local and mayoral elections on Thursday 2 May, Greater Manchester residents must register before midnight tonight (Tuesday 16 April).

It takes just five minutes to apply on the gov.uk website.

This year, residents across Greater Manchester will be voting in two elections, with residents in Salford voting in three elections.

These are for the Mayor of Greater Manchester Combined Authority – who is a major figure in the political life of the city-region, with unique powers and responsibilities – and for local Councillors, who are elected to represent their local area and residents, and get to contribute to the development of local policies too.

On top of this, Salford residents will also be voting for The Salford City Mayor too, who is Salford’s political, strategic, and community leader, and has overall responsibility for the delivery of all council services.

In case you aren’t quite up to speed, nominations for Mayor candidates closed on Friday 5 April, and that means there’s a total of six people standing in the third election for the Mayor of Greater Manchester – with current Mayor, Labour and Co-operative’s, Andy Burnham, being one of them.

The candidates nominated to stand in the election for the Mayor for Greater Manchester Combined Authority are:

  • Jake Austin (Liberal Democrats)
  • Dan Barker (Reform UK)
  • Nick Buckley (Independent)
  • Andy Burnham (Labour and Co-operative)
  • Laura Evans (The Conservative Party
  • Hannah Kathrine Spencer (Green Party)
Today is your last day to register to vote in Greater Manchester’s local and mayoral elections / Credit: Manchester City Council | gov.uk

As always, there are different ways to vote in the elections next month.

You can either do so at your local polling station, by post, or by proxy – which means appointing someone to vote on your behalf – with the deadline to apply for a postal vote in these elections being 5pm this Wednesday (17 April), and the deadline for applying for a proxy vote being 5pm on Wednesday 24 April.

As mentioned, residents will need to show a valid form of photo ID at the polling station, such as a passport, driving licence, some types of bus pass or proof of age card, or a free Voter Authority Certificate.

According to GMCA, every registered voter in Greater Manchester will have started to receive an election booklet explaining more about the election, and election addresses prepared by each of the candidates, in the post from yesterday (Monday 15 April), as required by law.

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More information about the elections taking place in Greater Manchester, including information about voter ID, registering to vote, and applying for a postal or proxy vote, can be found at www.gmelects.org.uk.

Featured Image – gov.uk

News

Manchester United, GMP, and the Council is clamping down on ‘illegal’ matchday parking at Old Trafford

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Manchester United has joined forces with police and the local Council to take action on a number of offences outside Old Trafford on match days.

This includes “illegal” parking, street trading, and so much more.

The football club teamed up with its partners, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) and Trafford Council, for another day of action to clampdown on a wide range of offences taking place outside its home stadium ahead of the team’s hotly-anticipated Premier League match against fierce local rivals, Liverpool, on Sunday 7 April.

Police and officers from the Council’s Regulatory Services Team tackled a number of issues on the day of action.

These included what was described as ‘rogue trading’ and ‘illegal street trading’, taxis illegally plying for hire or causing obstructions, and illegal parking, as well as the monitoring of food hygiene at food stands outside the stadium.

As part of this particular day of action – which followed a similar event outside Old Trafford on 24 February, ahead of United’s game against Fulham – Council officers and GMP staff spoke to more than 100 licensed taxis and hackney carriage drivers about illegal parking and illegally plying for hire, and 19 Fixed Penalty Notices were handed out to vehicles parked illegally on a clearway outside the ground.

Licensing and trading standards officers, along with Manchester United’s brand protection team, also spoke with all of the licensed pitches and street traders/peddlers outside the stadium, and a total of 73 products were removed for breaking rules under the Trade Marks Act.

Further legal action is set to be taken against some traders who were committing offences and were obstructive towards Council officers who were trying to carry out their tasks, according to Trafford Council.

Manchester United, GMP, and Council to clampdown on ‘illegal’ matchday parking at Old Trafford / Credit: GMP Stretford

“Our partnership work with Trafford Council is vital in being able to tackle illegal street trading and parking issues,” a spokesperson for GMP said in a statement following the day of action.

“We will continue to work with our partners to ensure a safe matchday experience, both inside and out of the stadium, for all those attending the ground.”

Jim Liggett, who is the Director of Operations at Manchester United, also explained that the club was “pleased” to have been able to join forces with Trafford Council and GMP on their day of action to clampdown on “illegal behaviour” outside Old Trafford.

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He added: “We remain committed to supporting the local authorities as we seek to collectively reduce any impact matches at Old Trafford may have on the community around the stadium.”

Featured Image – Trafford Council

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