MCDONALD’S

I’VE just finished watching the Tuesday ABC 7:30 Report. This program sometimes disappoints, but tonight was a corker; I’m not sure if it was because ABC reporting is in general hitting a low spot.

The subject is question was the hiring and firing practices of McDonald’s. The ABC, in what must be considered a gimlet-eyed grasp of the obvious, is apparently exercised by the revelation that McDonald’s hires young teens out of school at cheap rates and by the time they hit their mid- teens and (a) start to cost more and (b) show no signs of wanting to move into the McDonald’s management structure, send them off into the real world. This is unofficially known as “Learn and Churn”.

Well, who would have thought? The silliness of this program’s premise was compounded by the contribution from a union leader who was highly concerned about all these older teens getting marching orders and wondering why they couldn’t be promoted to management positions – resulting of course in McDonald’s eventually having more managers than workers, not that this would violate any union business principles.

Then came the McDonald’s country manager who had apparently never heard of “learn and churn” (yeah, right) and then proceeded dodge any direct statements about McDonald’s hiring and firing policies with all the professionalism of the most experienced of politicians and making most viewers grit their teeth.

Why can’t the ABC find something useful to do? Its nightly news is not very good any more and it looks like 7. 30 Report is heading the same way.

Why can’t union leaders get a grasp, however tenuous, of basic economic theory? And why can’t captains of industry grow backbones and tell the truth instead of hiding behind platitudinous waffle?

Everyone knows McDonald’s and some other fast-food outlets hire juniors and let them go by the time they are qualified for the full award rate unless they qualify for promotion.

It’s a business plan and a good one. And, most important, it ensures that the fast-food industry supplies positions for school kids who want a job and some work experience, rather than refuges for older teens who really need to move on and make room.

It sounds a bit harsh but it makes sense. A.R. KENNY, Toowoomba