McDonald’s wins right to change workers’ pay, conditions
McDonald’s will revise workers’ shifts and cut down overtime during the pandemic under a temporary measure approved by the Fair Work Commission. One union has labelled the move a “shameful attack on workers’ rights”.
HS Coronavirus News
Don't miss out on the headlines from HS Coronavirus News. Followed categories will be added to My News.
McDonald’s has won the right to temporarily change conditions for workers during the pandemic.
A decision handed down on Tuesday by the full bench of the Fair Work Commission gave the fast food company the green light to revise the award.
The decision means employers may face a reduction to their guaranteed minimum hours and will not be paid overtime, instead receiving ordinary rates for any extra hours worked.
McDonald’s has 107,556 employees in Australia working at 996 stores.
The changes to the award apply to McDonald’s staff who do not qualify for JobKeeker.
As part of safeguarding employees’ rights, the commission ruled any rostering decisions must be made “without coercion or duress” from their employer.
Australian Industry Group, representing McDonald’s, said in its submission the new model was “an appropriate temporary measure that will facilitate the sustainable and ongoing employment of part-time employees in what is a dynamic and unprecedented environment warranting the grant of greater flexibility”.
The changes were designed to create a “more flexible and agile way” for employers to respond to declining demand due to COVID-19, it said.
The commission was told McDonald’s had experienced a drop in customers coming in for breakfast and those eating late at night and in the early hours of the morning.
Its lunchtime trade was slightly higher than normal, the commission heard.
The initial proposal from McDonald’s was to keep the changes in place for three months however the commission found that was not warranted because restrictions on cafes and restaurants were starting to ease.
The new clause will be effective until July 31 and can be extended again if there is another application made to the commission.
The Retail and Fast Food Workers Union had argued the clause would “permit the creation of a class of worker who has all of the uncertainty of casual employment, but without the offset of casual loading and with all the obligations of permanent employment, but without any entitlement to overtime.”
After the decision was handed down, the union’s secretary Josh Cullinan described it as a “chocolate-coated s--- sandwich”.
He said some rights had been won “but at its core, it’s a shameful attack on workers’ rights”.
MORE NEWS
BUSINESSES BEG FOR LOCAL TRAVEL BAN TO END