’Hostile’ McDonald’s requiring union right of entry permits

Enforcement of right of entry permits by employers is generally associated with the militant CFMEU, but McDonald’s is forcing delegates to get ROE permits to talk to young workers.

McDonald’s franchisees often require retail union organisers to obtain right of entry permits. Picture: AFP

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McDonald’s franchisees are often resisting unions and forcing them to get right of entry permits before coming into their restaurants and talking to workers, in a stance ­usually associated with how building bosses deal with construction unions.

Union officials are claiming the fast food giant has become increasingly hostile towards organised labour since walking away from enterprise bargaining five years ago, as they unions take on McDonald’s in a test case before the Fair Work Commission.

The Australian revealed on Monday that employers feared any union success over McDonald’s would spread multi-employer pay deals across the retail and hospitality sectors.

Backing the union bid to force McDonald’s to negotiate a new multi-employer deal, Shop Distributive and Allied Employees Association organiser Christopher Matonti told the Fair Work Commission that most of his current visits to stores required right of entry permits.

He said, in contrast, when the company had an enterprise agreement with the union, he did not need a right of entry permit and McDonald’s was required to ­notify the union when new staff had joined the store.

“I would contact the managers at the stores, and when I made site visits, I sat in the restaurant to speak with employees. This may have been to introduce new workers to the union, to assist workers with workplace issues or to discuss various union campaigns,” he said.

“When McDonald’s terminated the application for a McDonald’s enterprise agreement 2019 in February 2020, this changed. I considered many McDonald’s stores became hostile towards the union and did not assist the union in speaking to employees on-site.

“I began utilising a ROE permit to enter McDonald’s sites. When I conducted site visits, the ROE permit allowed me to sit in the crew room and talk to staff when they took their breaks. In certain circumstances, some visits would continue to occur in the restaurant without the use of ROE. This only occurred in a select few sites.”

SDA organiser Shae Monopoli told the commission that organising at McDonald’s was much harder than other fast food and retail stores he visited. “At supermarkets and retail stores (where) I conduct site visits, I do not need to seek right of entry permits because the operator allows SDA ­officials to attend by agreement,” he said.

“I am free to walk around the floor of the supermarkets and retail stores and speak to workers. At Hungry Jack’s and KFC, I can go into the store and ask to speak to people, and the manager will send them out.

“The SDA has induction arrangements with fast food stores like Hungry Jack’s or KFC, so we are able to meet every worker on their first or second shift.

“The union spends a lot of time at these stores and we know workers on a first-name basis. McDonald’s does not have these arrange­ments. I do not feel welcomed into McDonald’s stores and access to workers is very limited.”

SDA South Australian branch secretary Josh Peak said the company’s behaviour towards the union had changed over the past four years. “Now it’s a very difficult relationship and we pretty much are only entering into stores under our legal rights,” he said.

“That brings a whole number of challenges because it often means we will be in the crew room and only able to speak to people on their break times but … many workers are rostered not to have any breaks at all and so there will be many staff that can’t be seen.”

McDonald’s was contacted for comment on Monday but did not respond before deadline.