Desperate to Attract and Retain Workers, McDonald's Will Begin Offering Childcare and Higher Wages: Report

With historic shortfalls in available workers, many companies and chains are offering incentives to keep their staff at capacity.

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McDonald's (MCD) tried this earlier this year, with one location offering free iPhones to new hires if they agreed to stay on the job for at least six months.

Now, the fast-food titan has turned to kicking up benefits for employees. The Wall Street Journal reports that McDonald's will be offering new benefits including higher wages, paid tuition and emergency child care services for workers, depending on their franchisees' rules.

The report states that McDonald's surveyed nearly 5,000 employees across its ranks to find out what they would prioritize more in the workplace. Better benefits and workplace flexibility were among the top desired results.

Related: McDonald's Is Giving Away Free French Fries for Life

The company will be making a "multimillion-dollar investment" to help fund these incentives, including paying for higher wages.

Only about 5% of McDonald's in the U.S. are run corporately — the remaining are owned by franchisees, which accounts for over 12,700 locations.

The chain, as did much of the industry, suffered during the pandemic, posting its lowest profit income in 13 years in 2020 while also shuttering around 200 locations in the U.S. in the same year.

McDonald's has also taken heat amid wage strikes by workers around the country, leading the chain to agree that it would increase hourly wages up to $17 in corporate-owned restaurants, which would not account for the 95% of franchisee-owned locations.

WSJ also reported that franchise owners will continue to evaluate pay among workers and determine how to "make it more competitive" throughout this summer.

McDonald's was up over 28% year over year as of Tuesday afternoon.

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