The fast food industry

El Moose Monstero · Post by **El Moose Monstero** » 2003-08-24 03:00pm

Actually, by area standards, McDonalds in Cramlington doesnt do to badly - it pays £4.85 an hour, IIRC, rising to somewhere between £5 and £6 if you're there for long enough - in comparison - my job washing dishes in the local pub brought in minimum wage of £3.50 an hour (plus all the bacon sandwiches and chips I could eat

- still was a shit job though), and my current job sticking labels on clothes for a semi-faceless national cheap crap clothes shop pays £4.20. But I'd still rather not end up at McDonalds.

neoolong · Post by **neoolong** » 2003-08-24 03:07pm

theski wrote:Its just like Wal-mart . Wal-mart needs to hire 1 million people a year to replace turnover and open new stores... Cheap labor=turnover

Wal-mart also treats its employees like shit. Does McDonald's go that far?

theski · Post by **theski** » 2003-08-24 03:09pm

The bottom or entry level jobs at most giant companies, are mostly shit.. and the employees are replaceable.. Its sucks and its unfair but its life..

Lord Pounder · Post by **Lord Pounder** » 2003-08-24 04:25pm

My 1st ever job was in a chippy while i was at school. The bastard paid me £2 an hour £1.50 under the minimum wage of the time AND the cunt charged me for my dinner while i worked there. Suffice to say i didn't work for him long and while i did i stole all round me.

neoolong · Post by **neoolong** » 2003-08-24 04:40pm

Lord Pounder wrote:My 1st ever job was in a chippy while i was at school. The bastard paid me £2 an hour £1.50 under the minimum wage of the time AND the cunt charged me for my dinner while i worked there. Suffice to say i didn't work for him long and while i did i stole all round me.

What's a chippy? Some type of fast food place?

Lord Poe · Post by **Lord Poe** » 2003-08-24 06:23pm

Dammit, my "Hell Taco" page isn't public yet, and still under construction. But here's a sneak preview!

http://h4h.com/louis/comics/helltaco.html

Crazy_Vasey · Post by **Crazy_Vasey** » 2003-08-24 06:43pm

neoolong wrote:
Lord Pounder wrote:My 1st ever job was in a chippy while i was at school. The bastard paid me £2 an hour £1.50 under the minimum wage of the time AND the cunt charged me for my dinner while i worked there. Suffice to say i didn't work for him long and while i did i stole all round me.
What's a chippy? Some type of fast food place?

You don't have fish and chip shops where you live? You're missing out!

TrailerParkJawa · Post by **TrailerParkJawa** » 2003-08-24 07:18pm

Crazy_Vasey wrote:
neoolong wrote:
Lord Pounder wrote:My 1st ever job was in a chippy while i was at school. The bastard paid me £2 an hour £1.50 under the minimum wage of the time AND the cunt charged me for my dinner while i worked there. Suffice to say i didn't work for him long and while i did i stole all round me.
What's a chippy? Some type of fast food place?
You don't have fish and chip shops where you live? You're missing out!

Not really. There are a few in our area. I know there is one by my condo, but the place is always empty and it seems a little pricey. ( 7 bucks for fish and chips )

Xenophobe3691 · Post by **Xenophobe3691** » 2003-08-24 07:22pm

Crazy_Vasey wrote:
neoolong wrote:
Lord Pounder wrote:My 1st ever job was in a chippy while i was at school. The bastard paid me £2 an hour £1.50 under the minimum wage of the time AND the cunt charged me for my dinner while i worked there. Suffice to say i didn't work for him long and while i did i stole all round me.
What's a chippy? Some type of fast food place?
You don't have fish and chip shops where you live? You're missing out!

I currently just moved into a college town, maybe I"ll find some around here...

Post by **Coyote** » 2003-08-24 08:44pm

Yeah, these jobs don't require specialized labor or training, really, so they treat you like shit and pay you worse specifically so you won't stick around and make a career ou of it. They want high turnover so that everyone gets paid entry-level scut wages. If you had 10-year veteran workers that have amassed skills and some small amount of respect they get uppity and demand real wages.

Agent R · Post by **Agent R** » 2003-08-24 09:05pm

TrailerParkJawa wrote: Interesting, most of the fast food jobs out here are held by Mexicans. Its been years since American teens held fast food jobs around here, at least at places like McDonalds. Its funny, cause my first job was in fast food.

I've kinda noticed that, too. But it's not just Mexicans, there are masses of Filipinos employed, too. I went down to LA and at nearly every fast food place I stopped at a highly disproportionate number (ahem, pretty much all) of workers were Mexican. I went to a Mr. Chau's in Santa Clara, and I didn't see a single worker there who looked even remotely Asian!

And about teenagers not being able to get entry-level jobs.....all of the people I saw seemed pretty old. In fact, I could have sworn that the woman who took my order was at least 45! Then again, it could just be premature aging due her close and constant exposure to fast food....

TrailerParkJawa · Post by **TrailerParkJawa** » 2003-08-24 10:33pm

Agent R wrote: I've kinda noticed that, too. But it's not just Mexicans, there are masses of Filipinos employed, too. I went down to LA and at nearly every fast food place I stopped at a highly disproportionate number (ahem, pretty much all) of workers were Mexican. I went to a Mr. Chau's in Santa Clara, and I didn't see a single worker there who looked even remotely Asian!

And about teenagers not being able to get entry-level jobs.....all of the people I saw seemed pretty old. In fact, I could have sworn that the woman who took my order was at least 45! Then again, it could just be premature aging due her close and constant exposure to fast food....

The problem we have here in the valley is the economy. It does'nt surprise me to see older workers at fast food places or places like Home Depot. I saw one of the Electrical Engineers from my last company working at Home Depot in Sunnyvale.

Teens do work in some "fast food" type places but its more like Starbucks, In-Out-Burger, and stuff like that.

lance · Post by **lance** » 2003-08-25 03:33am

The McDonalds I work in is pretty decent, one asst. manager thats pretty anal about the rules, and a coulple people who seriosly slack off on their jobs. That realy isn't a problem unless its the person who washes dishes.
But other than that it you can grab stuff thats going out, grab a couple nuggets and fries, and have a free meal. Though I can understand the reason behind not letting the employees eating food thats being thrown out. If you have a bin system then some of the food will be thrown out later in the day as business slows down. If you let them eat the food being thrown out they might put more food in the bin than what should normaly be there. Not that the loss of the burger actually matters.

CaptainChewbacca · Post by **CaptainChewbacca** » 2003-08-25 04:41am

I actually couldn't get a job at McDonald's.

It was my senior year of highschool, and apparently a clean-cut white kid with a car and a 3.7 GPA wasn't "McMateriel".

Oh well, now I work in a lab. But its still minimum wage

Grad students get crap for money.

Post by **The Yosemite Bear** » 2003-08-25 06:56am

Superman wrote:Actually, I'm advising him to get another job. Most of the retarded fast food employees don't seem to realize that there are higher paying or less stressful jobs out there...

*Twirls 24oz tall beer stine*

did someone mention my name and profession?

Nah when I was a teen I was working for Southland (7-11) yes they let you have some of the "Food" but you have to write it down, and it's only during your lunch break. I got written up for not wearing my Southland/Seven Eleven Smock when the area manager decided for some unknown reason to walk into the walk in freezer (I was wearing thick gloves, and a heavy parka, I challenge anyone else to wear thin polyester in a walk in freezer if your goinging to be stocking it for and inventoring it for over an hour!

Zoink · Post by **Zoink** » 2003-08-25 08:54am

I have to wear steel-toe shoes in the company's production area. I wear a pair of leather Kodiak shoes that look like a regular pair of shoes. I think I paid $70 CDN ($50 US) for them, and I think they had cheaper models. Your brother should check out the work boot section of a store (if he hasn't already).

If McDonalds didn't reprimand him for eating discarded food, they'd be liable if he got sick.

Tribun · Post by **Tribun** » 2003-08-25 09:05am

Well, here the opinon about Fast-Food industry isn't very hight. All eat it, but because of thier economical tactics, they gott some nasty nicknames:
-McDoof
-McDreck
-McWuerg
-Wuerger-King

Zoink · Post by **Zoink** » 2003-08-25 09:19am

Tribun wrote:they gott some nasty nicknames:
-McDoof
-McDreck
-McWuerg
-Wuerger-King

They don't have the McScheißen?

Col. Crackpot · Post by **Col. Crackpot** » 2003-08-25 09:22am

Eating "extra" or "leftover" food in restaraunts is a major cost control issue. i have worked in many a restaraunt in my younger days and i have even risen to to the miserable positions of management a few times. Do you know how many times cooks "accidently" make well done steaks? or how mant times waitstaff accidently order 2 orders of shirmp alfredo instead of one? This case may be one little nugget, but it sets a standard. You can call it a slippry slope fallacy all you want, but it is true that if you let one employee slide and eat the extras then before you know it you are up to your ass in knuckleheads eating a sudden surge of extra cheeseburgers. ::shudder::: ohh bad memories.....

Peregrin Toker · Post by **Peregrin Toker** » 2003-08-25 09:31am

neoolong wrote:
Simon H.Johansen wrote:
Superman wrote:Actually, I'm advising him to get another job. Most of the retarded fast food employees don't seem to realize that there are higher paying or less stressful jobs out there...
I recall reading somewhere (maybe it was "No Logo" by Naomi Klein) that fast food joints generally pay their employees as little as they can get away with...
Uh, don't most places try to do that?

I think the same source also mentioned Starbucks employees being paid ludicrously low wages considered how much work they do.

Post by **Ghost Rider** » 2003-08-25 10:06am

The Yosemite Bear wrote:
Superman wrote:Actually, I'm advising him to get another job. Most of the retarded fast food employees don't seem to realize that there are higher paying or less stressful jobs out there...
*Twirls 24oz tall beer stine*

did someone mention my name and profession?

Nah when I was a teen I was working for Southland (7-11) yes they let you have some of the "Food" but you have to write it down, and it's only during your lunch break. I got written up for not wearing my Southland/Seven Eleven Smock when the area manager decided for some unknown reason to walk into the walk in freezer (I was wearing thick gloves, and a heavy parka, I challenge anyone else to wear thin polyester in a walk in freezer if your goinging to be stocking it for and inventoring it for over an hour!

Only if you're Nanook+Tarzan.

Though fortunatly I only wqorked in the food industry as a waiter(where my wage should've ben zilch and the job nothing more then a place to which I travel to to pretty much panhandle...aka earn tips).

Lord Poe · Post by **Lord Poe** » 2003-08-25 10:10am

When I worked at Del Taco, we'd trade food with the local Domino's pizza guys also working the night shift!

Post by **haas mark** » 2003-08-25 10:15am

BTW, has it ever occurred that a HS diploma in some parts is an overqualification?

~ver

neoolong · Post by **neoolong** » 2003-08-25 10:28am

Simon H.Johansen wrote:
neoolong wrote:
Simon H.Johansen wrote: I recall reading somewhere (maybe it was "No Logo" by Naomi Klein) that fast food joints generally pay their employees as little as they can get away with...
Uh, don't most places try to do that?
I think the same source also mentioned Starbucks employees being paid ludicrously low wages considered how much work they do.

Actually I worked at a Starbucks inside Barnes and Noble. It didn't seem that I was getting really low wages. I got book store wages though.

Did it say how much they get paid?

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2003-08-25 11:30am

Lord Poe wrote:Dammit, my "Hell Taco" page isn't public yet, and still under construction. But here's a sneak preview!

http://h4h.com/louis/comics/helltaco.html

My first post high school job was also working at Taco Bell. I'd already joined the Navy so I only worked there for 5 months. My sister started working there shortly after I left for the Navy. My old manager said he gave her my raise.

I didn't work there long enough to really hate it. Plus since I didn't really need to work I had a bit of say in how much and when I worked. My manager was also pretty good about that as well but that may have just been because he knew I could bail anytime if he hosed me too much.

Mostly I worked as a cashier and the fry guy. The person who fried the chips, taco shells and the shells for the taco salads. We also used to cook the beans and the meat. From what my sister told me later on Taco Bell cut cost by trucking in a lot of pre-cooked stuff that only had to be warmed up (which is why the current meat looks more like a paste).