In a move to restructure and reduce costs, McDonald’s has closed the doors of its U.S. corporate offices and is set to let go of a considerable amount of its executive staff. Last week, employees were notified via internal memo that they should work from home Monday through Wednesday as the company was preparing to inform those being terminated “virtually” in order to maintain confidentiality.
The lay-offs come on the heels of CEO Chris Kempczinski warning that “difficult decisions” would soon be made and confirming to The Wall Street Journal that some jobs “may go away.” Although it is not known yet how many people will be affected by the layoffs, it remains uncertain if the job losses will spread to McDonald’s restaurant locations with delivery and mobile pick-up orders on the rise.
These new developments are part of a larger trend – Burger King recently announced that 424 employees would be laid off across 26 restaurants mainly in Detroit while several other companies have also let go of their staff since last month.