At least a dozen new staff at McDonald’s Chatswood store in Sydney have scored a $1000 bonus after signing up to work, as the fast food chain resorts to big cash incentives to win staff.

Store manager Rhys Taylor said they were losing staff quicker than they could hire them, but the sign-on bonus, a refer-a-friend incentive scheme and a national job advertising drive, had helped to deliver up to 50 new hires.