McDonald's boycott leads to firings

A Facebook group protesting bad service at McDonald's led to the firing of several employees last week.

Complaints from Penn students about the customer service at the McDonald's restaurant on 40th and Walnut streets prompted the company to fire some of its employees last week.

Following an incident that occurred at the restaurant in the early hours of Sunday, Oct. 19, a group of students created a Facebook group called "Boycott McDonald's." The students' complaints resulted in an apology from the general manager in addition to the firings.

Wharton sophomore Keith Williams, who witnessed the incident, explained that he and a group of friends entered the McDonald's that morning so his friend, a College junior who did not wish to be included in the article, could use the restroom.

The security guard told them that the friend was not allowed to use the restroom until he ordered food. The student proceeded to order a meal, Williams said, but the cashier made a mistake and needed an override from the shift manager.

Because the friend had already complained about the service, the manager on duty "deliberately told [the cashier] to take her time," explained Williams.

When he complained again, the security guard jumped in and began threatening the students.

The guard said things like "don't make me take you out of here," and referred to the rest of the customers as "stupid school kids," Williams said.

The cashier also screamed at the students for standing too close while trying to read the menu, Williams added.

Williams filed a complaint on the McDonald's Web site and created the "Boycott McDonald's" Facebook group the next afternoon.

General manager of the store Anthony Hill called him personally within a few days.

Hill explained that he had been on vacation when the incident occurred and had received 17 complaints just from that one weekend, said a College sophomore who witnessed the incident but wished to remain anonymous for fear of repercussions. He corroborated Williams' entire story.

Hill apologized profusely for the incident and asked for names and descriptions of the offending staff members, said the student.

A few days later, Hill notified Williams that the offending employees had been identified and terminated, although Hill said he had been asked by his corporate office not to reveal the number or names of the staff members who were let go.

"I know what it's like to be a college student," said Hill, a 2007 Drexel alumnus who was also in a fraternity. "We support Penn kids as much as we can and . don't want to make them feel like they are not at home."

He added that being "rude is something that we do not pride ourselves on," and that he will not tolerate disrespect for customers from his staff members.

Williams said the Facebook group, which currently has 122 members and includes regular updates on the situation, has received a lot of positive attention from students.

"Generally people agree and then they have their own story to tell," he said, adding that among the comments he received one student had said "finally someone did it!"

Comments (43)

i eat it once or twic s year when i need a colon clensing

and whats the deal with useing the bather are they publick or privat when you got to go you got to go its got to br better then hanging it out in hr street

1. McDonald's employees are rude. 2. Their security threatened PAYING customers 3. Customers lodged a complaint. Seems logical to me! Service in most retail establishments in West (or Southwest) Philly and many establishments in Penn such as Dining is atrocious. It should not matter whether the group which went there were drunk or not, or if they are students or not. The fact is that they are paying customers and a world famous establishment like McDonald's needs to do something about this. The string of incidents at McDonald's is atrocious. Over the summer the DP ran a story on a shooting at McDonald's at 5:30 pm! YES, PM! In daylight! Yes employees might be from a shitty background and may have terrible lives through no fault of their own but the fact is that they should also realise that their job is not given to them by charity and there are many people who are unemployed. They may have worked to earn their job, but they need to respect it and respect their customers and realise they cannot survive on people's pity. There are thousands who will do the job much better than them and why shouldn't they! Why should someone currently unemployed be unemployed when they will be able to work to their customers' needs while the current occupant of the job is someone who says they hate their job and show that they do.

I wouldn't eat McDonalds JUNK anyway. Have a nice day.

Dear Penn kids, here are 2 facts of life that you may not have learned yet: 1) Philadelphia is a rude, angry city. You push people here, they don't smile and look away, they push back. It's part of Philly's charm. 2) Working fast food sucks. Any job where you stand between people and their food is going to result in dealing with a lot of rude and angy people. Ok, now think about what happens when you combine these 2 things. Philly fast food workers are serving people already predisposed to be rude and angry in a situation that often makes people rude and angry. However, they are from Philly themselves, so they are not going to put up with people's crap. So maybe they had a chip on their shoulders when the Penn kids came in, but I'm willing to bet the kids did something to set them off. There are different kinds of rude. There's yelling and being difficult, but there's also walking around with a sense of self-absorbed entitlement being totally oblivious to the world around you.

I'm sure the McDonald's has terrible service, but these kids should be ashamed of themselves... Because of their petty complaints a few people who really needed these jobs are now unemployed. Its easy for us here at Penn to think that the workers are just rude. But if these students stop and think about why they might be so rude to Penn students... lack of education, poverty-stricken upbringing, violence in the home..... then maybe these students will realize that the workers in McDonald's might have more pressing things on their mind then serving up your double cheeseburger promptly while you drunkenly text on your blackberry or iphone.

[QUOTE id="4b7c6ae6-07d8-4a39-93d5-8ac8e2fc4ddb"]Don't get me wrong - that McDonald's has terrible service, gouges on prices after midnight, reeks, and is a haven for panhandlers. However, you've got a bunch of frat guys who get drunk, go to a McDonald's to piss, probably treat the workers with disrespect, and then create a facebook group about it? And then you write a DP article but can't get any of them to own up to their comments? Come on.[/QUOTE] Student, you hit the nail on the head.

Don't get me wrong - that McDonald's has terrible service, gouges on prices after midnight, reeks, and is a haven for panhandlers. However, you've got a bunch of frat guys who get drunk, go to a McDonald's to piss, probably treat the workers with disrespect, and then create a facebook group about it? And then you write a DP article but can't get any of them to own up to their comments? Come on.

of course everyone always has to blame the kids no matter what right? Because all kids are crackheads and get drunk. well you know what. not all kids are like that. there are good kids left in this world for all of you people that give teens all the blame. why dont you try stepping in their shoes before putting all of the blame on them. and Mc Donalds employs are obnoxious and rude, so this isnt anything new, so why do you guys have to blame the teens for every freaking reason.

Honestly, is the real issue with McDonalds or is it with the culture of service (or lack thereof) in Philadelphia. I could go on and on about the horrible service I've received at Philadelphia-based retail establishments: McDonalds on 40th, Qdoba up the street, CVS on 38th, Ride Aid on 23rd/Walnut, even Urban Outfitters for crying out loud (didn't they even mock the service at U.O.s in the movie National Treasure?)... the list goes on and on. McDonalds is recruiting from [and underpaying] the same pool of unqualified candidates as the rest of these retailers. While I agree it's fun to pick on McDonalds because their food is horrible, the focus should really be on the general lack of respect and courtesy from retail associates in Philadelphia. Bring it to light and force the retailers and/or city to do something about it.

You're seriously comparing a bitchy teenage facebook page to the Vietnam War protests? Wow... So, what, you want some type of presidential intervention or perhaps a bill before Congress to federally legislate an end to poor customer service at the MacDo at 40th & Walnut? [QUOTE id="fb860a59-5c8a-429d-9b36-b8bc25fecb7c"]To all the naysayers who claim college students should stick to the books, I would like to remind you that student protests have had a significant impact on the social and political agendas of many governments. From the Vietnam war to French CPE youth rioting, students have gathered to let everyone know what we believe, and governments listen. Our country was even founded on the principle that it is not okay to be complacent; we need to stand-up for what we believe in! Im sorry if you feel these students were "wasting their time" standing up what they believe in but it is quite clear to me that you care very little about you believe in. Just because you don't care, the rest of us should not sit back with our heads down. Someone has to take action. - The World[/QUOTE]

I was wondering where in the article it states that the students involved were frat boys? I sympathize for the McDonald's workers who lost their jobs. I'm sure it would be tough to deal with a constant influx of drunken, rowdy college students while knowing that they will probably be the next CEOs and CFOs of Fortune 500 companies. But at the same time, I'm sure that there are plenty of West Philadelphians who need employment and who would actually do their job with professionalism and courtesy. So why keep paying people with bad attitudes?

To all the naysayers who claim college students should stick to the books, I would like to remind you that student protests have had a significant impact on the social and political agendas of many governments. From the Vietnam war to French CPE youth rioting, students have gathered to let everyone know what we believe, and governments listen. Our country was even founded on the principle that it is not okay to be complacent; we need to stand-up for what we believe in! Im sorry if you feel these students were "wasting their time" standing up what they believe in but it is quite clear to me that you care very little about you believe in. Just because you don't care, the rest of us should not sit back with our heads down. Someone has to take action. - The World

Its not a question of having a disadvantaged life versus a pampered life. We should all answer whether we believe it is justifiable to act out your emotions on other people, more specifically customers. I undertsand being angry but not to be in control of your emotional outbursts is a form of mental instability. We all get angry but we are able to rationalize these emotional influences, constrain our ego/superego, and mitigate the impending influence. If you justify the actions of these workers by arguing they have had a hard life, I strongly disagree with you. Not only is it unacceptable to act out your emotions on others in your day to day life, but it is especially inappropriate to do so in the workplace. Think of the jobs you have, the classes you take, or responisibilities you hold; would you ever consider acting less than professionally for even a moment? Whether the students were drunk is a nonissue. In the realm of customer service, rude customers should also be handled professionally. From the empirical facts presented in this article, I cannot decipher any overtly "rude" behavior on the part of the students; the request to use the bathroom seems rather reasonable regardless of emotional influences. Im sure there was a bias in the article but we can disregard any conversational nuiances that led that cashier to feel the students were being rude. I have personally been allowed to use that bathroom without placing an order at the McDonalds on 40th. I know it is literally as simple as pressing a button. If a paying customer requests to use the bathroom, I don't care how rude he/she seems to be, he/she should be allowed to do so regardless of body-language or word-choice.

This is by far the best comment here. It accurately and humorously describes the situation. well done.

I think the facebook group was completely ridiculous and those behind it should be embarrassed. It's really disconcerting to think that people actually lost their jobs over a bunch of spoiled kids that think the world should cater to them. The story was obviously exaggerated (some girl even claimed she thought people were being "raped" at mcdonalds) and didnt merit the attention it received. While its obviously true that customer service is the foundation of a successful business, that doesnt give drunk frat boys the right to treat people any way they want and then get the last word because they have an obvious lack of pressing responsibilities in their life and plenty of leisure time in which to go on facebook and make a group with an unrealistic, clearly embellished version of what happened one night at McDonalds.I've always been proud of the positive community engagment that is an integral part of life at Penn and I'm embarrassed to be a member of a community that looks down on local employees rather than treating them with respect. This whole incident is infuriating.

I have been to that McDonald's while waiting in the Penn ER with my dad. The customer service was atrocious...the staff was annoyed I was there, they got the order wrong, and was horrible to deal with. It's about time something was done to fix it. I get that drunk college kids can be annoying, but having experienced the nightmare firsthand, they deserve what they got.

I am not a rich or privileged student. I am actually from a similar environment like theirs, the Bronx, NY, and I still wouldn't act that way if I were working in the services industry. I am also very nice when ordering, never drunk, never disrespectful, and they still treat me with an attitude and incredibly bad, not only at McDonald's, but also at Commons, Subway, Jamba Juice, etc here in campus. These people need to realize how important their job is, if they want to keep it, they should treat their customers with respect, unless the customer is being terribly impolite or even violent. People hiring these employees need to teach them a little bit about customer service, because they know nothing about it. (I've worked in retail, and I had to go through training for customer service, because that is the most important aspect of the services industry.)

Frat boys prefer Wawa. They handle drunken buffoons professionally and quickly.

1. The Mackers at 40th and Walnut is the second worst franchise I've ever visited. It's absolutely putrid. The champion? Memphis International Airport. I challenge anyone to name a more vile, decrepit McDonald's. 2. I know it's really popular to assume that ALL fraternity members are drunken troglodytes and, perhaps, deservedly. However, it is worth noting that a mind-boggling number of United States Presidents and CEOs were fraternity men in their university days: http://www3.davidson.edu/cms/images/StudentLife/STULIF_PCC_Sel_USPresFraternity%20Men(jun02).pdf http://www.forbes.com/2003/01/31/cx_dd_0131frat.html Obviously, there are those members of fraternities with redeeming qualities of some sort that have been able to find their niche in this world. So, in closing, before taking pot-shots at easy targets (fraternity men), it could be that the employees of the McDonald's in question are jerks. I'm inclined to assume the latter. Just my $.02... P.S. If I had to guess, I'd venture to say that the men involved in this incident were not members of a fraternity anyway...

Hi, Props to the first comment. Wealthy Penn students are complaining about disrespect? How about having a facebook page called: We will work hard and see how the other half lives. Bet they wouldn't last a minute. I dare them to work at Micky D's for 6 months. They can't do it. I double dare you. Work at Micky D's for 15 hours a week for six months and I will come sweep your sidewalk once a week for 6 months. Sweep AND work two jobs to pay for my relative's healthcare; even though I work at Penn, my relatives don't count in my benefit package. SH

A fast food restaurant has bad service. Why is this headline news in the student newspaper? Shouldn't Penn students be working towards significant accomplishments and striving for greatness rather than arguing with the night staff about the dollar menu. Where are your priorities? This makes headline news?

Pretty judgemental of you to say Dadd PAID FOR THESE KIDS to go to school. My parents didnt pay for me too attend Penn. Not ever smart kid has a rich parent. Just caring ones. Who's the indignent one pal?[QUOTE id="4aa1c41f-94d0-415f-a11d-1620588a9843"]Read between the lines - what a joke: A bunch of drunk frat boys, who think they run West Philly because daddums pays their tuition, wander into a low-income food establishment to look down their noses at the people who get paid minimum wage to clean up their piss in the middle of the night. The employees try to maintain their human dignity while the boys get more indignant. The manager, fearing a loss of business, and not wanting to piss-off Penn's elite, fires the shift who was there. Spoiled rotten little brats. It's a shame daddum's money can't buy them class. And people wonder why there's a rift between Penn and the West Philly locals.[/QUOTE]

Simply put, no one should ever eat McDonald's! It is lowest grade but edible. In response to "French Fry" at least these "drunk frat boys" have "Daddums". It is unfortunate that University City is located in one of the worst sections of Philadelphia and it is Southwest Philly not West. And these frat boys are getting a first rate education so they will never have to work at such an establishment making minimum wage because they cannot read beyond a fifth grade reading level.

[QUOTE id="2be0ab00-1b12-4341-9c48-d3a82f68019a"]First of all, like, why would any Penn student with class and intelligence even want to patronize a place like McDonald's with its disgusting fair? That place is made for the West Philly locals, not for us.[/QUOTE] Hey snob- It's FARE, not FAIR. Penn student, huh? Now, on to more serious matters. That restaurant is a health and safety hazard. Why do we continually consume food prepared in an unsanitary environment which plainly is a textbook example of how to not run a commercial kitchen? We all admit it's a filthy establishment, yet we return to risk contracting e.coli or any number of other things on a regular basis. Of course, the food isn't the only problem. We've all noticed the regularity with which fights occur inside and outside that place, and how often the police have to respond or park themselves on the corner to maintain order. It generally isn't Quakers fighting each other, but we are put at risk simply by being in the crowd when it happens. Put simply, McDonald's is not a social experiment. The staff may well be paid minimum wage; they may well have perceived issues and differences with Penn students and/or staff. They may be what we colloquially (and somewhat snidely) refer to as socially, economically, and educationally disadvantaged West Philly locals. And it doesn't matter. If the restaurant can't provide a clean environment, polite service, and tasty vittles sans bacterial contamination we shouldn't support it with our business.