McDonald’s is loving its older workers
If you’re looking for a gig in your golden years, you might want to check under the Golden Arches.
With the teens who so often staff its restaurants not always eager or able to start work early, McDonald’s is teaming up with AARP to hire older workers for its breakfast and lunchtime shifts.
The fast food giant will post positions on AARP’s online job board as it tries to fill roughly 250,000 jobs over the summer. McDonald’s also is working with the AARP Foundation to launch a pilot program in five states that will help match lower-income older Americans with po
tential jobs.
This isn’t the first time McDonald’s has targeted older workers. But while previous efforts have tended to be smaller, local campaigns, this marks the company’s first national effort to connect with a group that increasingly wants – and needs – to continue working into what were traditionally considered the retirement years.
While young people continue to be a vital part of the company’s workforce, “they’re in school, or aren’t always excited about working that 5 a.m. shift,” says Melissa Kersey, chief people officer for McDonald’s USA. “So we believe matching this mature workforce with the breakfast and lunch shift ... is really important.”
The jobs will include everything from cashier to shift manager, positions that older workers are especially well suited for because of their so-called “soft” skills, McDonald’s and AARP say, like showing up for work on time and being team players who can build connections with customers.
Older Americans are the fastestgrowing segment of the labor pool. By 2024, those who are 55 and older will make up 24.8% of the private labor force according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“Some of them have never recovered from the Great Recession,” says Susan Weinstock, AARP’s vice president for financial resilience. “Some of them have not had the opportunity to put away money for retirement in a way they would like . ... But we’re also living longer and living healthier, so there’s a lot of 65-year-olds who are very vibrant and have no interest in retiring. So this is an opportunity for them to continue to work and to continue to contribute.”
With a national unemployment rate of 3.8%, some employers are struggling to find workers. Ageism can be a barrier.
“Unfortunately some employers don’t see the value of ” older employees, says Weinstock, saying that some managers or business owners may mistakenly believe seniors don’t understand technology or are too set in their ways. “We want to spread the word about the value of older workers. We want employers to be open to hiring them in any job, in any position they need to fill.”
While McDonald’s is the first large quick service food chain to do so, more than 800 businesses including Pay Pal, and Bank of America have taken AARP’s pledge to include older people on their staffs.
McDonald’s is separately launching an initiative with the AARP Foundation to help connect lower-income people in their 50’s and older with open McDonald’s positions in Illinois, Missouri, Florida, Indiana, and North Carolina. The program will be rolled out across the U.S. before the fall.
“We want to spread the word about the value of older workers.” Susan Weinstock, AARP vice president for financial resilience