Thanks To 'Fight For $15' Minimum Wage, McDonald's Unveils Job-Replacing Self-Service Kiosks

[A.K.A. Overgrowem]

Ok, here is an innovative, totally new, idea. Instead of giving them a minimum wage bump, maybe the corporations can give them company scrip on top of their wages. That way the workers can increase demand but especially in ways that are most profitable to the company. Of course, any current employee discounts will be eliminated so the poor don't get spoiled.

I think that after a while, this will be so successful that most (possibly all) of the wages can eventually be phased out for company scrip.

Imagine the joy and stability that McDonalds' workers will have if they have a wallet brimming with free McRib coupons!
.
We should also tell the poor that on their deathbeds... they will have total consciousness - which is nice.

HAHA, Knew the owner of a company that had the whole, script for his products, thing worked out, none of his people would go for it. Guess they didn't want script from a casket co.

 

[twostrokenut]

so, you're saying that it's not the advancement of technology, but rather the demand for a living wage, that is the reason behind automation ?

Obviously kiosks are not new or really an advancement in tech. They're really old actually. What this is, is simply cost assessment.
What's the best way to keep my BigMacs priced where I want them to be?

Australia did it with smaller burgers and and min wage loopholes for teenagers.

 

[londonfog]

Carbon filters, and being honest with the kiddies. Kids won't make a big deal over it as long as mom and dad don't make a big deal over it.

until kiddies slip up at school and talk about mommies plants in the basement

 

[A.K.A. Overgrowem]

100% right.

It's usually publicly traded companies too. I swear the advent of the stock market is going to be the downfall of civilization. Once a company goes public, everything is out the window. They don't give a shit about their employees, customers, the enviornment. Nothing. All that matters is the bottom line, and growth. More more more. They are beholden to their share holders at the expense of everything else.

I try to avoid big companies like this at all costs and spend my money with local companies.

McDs. has had them here for a while. Prob. eliminate 2? jobs per shift? They will be in every Chicken Doodle and fried octopus joint, in a flash, no doubt. That's millions and millions of jobs. No worry tho, the vanishing Mexican will leave lots of desirable jobs for them to do. Sod thrower comes to mind.

 

[twostrokenut]

and self driving cars and SEMI Trucks is happening NOW, imagine all the men out of work

I don't buy this. Who was that a couple years ago that got sued when their fly by wire throttles malfunctioned, toyota?
Even the automated harvesters in use right now have guys and gals sitting in the cockpit reading a book or whatever.

 

[st0wandgrow]

until kiddies slip up at school and talk about mommies plants in the basement

Hasn't happened yet. All 3 of our kids know about the plants, and all 3 of them have had a frank discussion with us as to why they can't talk about them with friends. I'd be more worried about them saying something if we hid it from them and they stumbled upon it.

 

[londonfog]

Hasn't happened yet. All 3 of our kids know about the plants, and all 3 of them have had a frank discussion with us as to why they can't talk about them with friends. I'd be more worried about them saying something if we hid it from them and they stumbled upon it.

I hope it never does happen to you , but everyone can't take that risk

 

[spandy]

Uhhhhh, yeah. It was the minimum wage that did it. I ate a burger from McD about 12 years ago. It was awful. Ranked lowest in taste in a blind taste test by Consumers Report compared to other burgers. McD was heading towards automation anyway. They have to cut costs because their business is trending down and their product sucks compared to independent local businesses. Last year, their revenue growth was -11%. I hear they are experimenting with using "fresh beef". What have they been using? Yuck. Would you eat that?

Three Trends Haunting McDonald's: Localization, Customization, And Cheap Labor
Once McDonald's MCD -0.17% occupied the best spot at Syntagma Square, in Athens Greece, attracting both the locals and tourists who were looking for fast, cheap, and convenient food.

Today, McDonald’s continues to occupy the same location, but ithas plenty of competition from Greek upstarts that serve fast and convenient food and much more: localization and customization.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/panosmourdoukoutas/2015/06/18/three-trends-haunting-mcdonalds-localization-customization-and-cheap-labor/#17e50d3b6ee1

So, yeah, automate and standardize. Pretty soon you can get the same crappy calorie rich and nutrition poor burger from a kiosk. Somebody, maybe, not me. Fewer people every day are willing to hurt themselves with a McD burger.

You know, considering how terrible those burgers are it is very fitting that they get pooped out of a machine. I saw automate the entire system and then they only need hire a tech and a grunt for each shift to keep that garbage flowing.

 

[A.K.A. Overgrowem]

Hasn't happened yet. All 3 of our kids know about the plants, and all 3 of them have had a frank discussion with us as to why they can't talk about them with friends. I'd be more worried about them saying something if we hid it from them and they stumbled upon it.

Have 2 friends whose kids told classmates, trouble ensued.

 

[Fogdog]

You know, considering how terrible those burgers are it is very fitting that they get pooped out of a machine. I saw automate the entire system and then they only need hire a tech and a grunt for each shift to keep that garbage flowing.

McD is just planning on installing self service ordering stations. Nothing exotic. It will replace maybe two people at the front counter who really just pushed buttons anyway. It's more like replacing the elevator operator than anything else. To call this an action driven by a $15 minimum wage is mendacious. This change was going to happen anyway because those people at the counter don't add value. I wouldn't mind it if other restaurants made this conversion. Fewer lines, I punch in what I want and pick it up when ready. Not that big a deal.

The real argument is whether or not $15 minimum wage increase will cause unemployment and inflation. Neither of these truthy-isms are factual.

 

[spandy]

You dont tell kids if you want keep it secret. Kids are innocent, and if you have them believing that its okay then even if told to be quiet there runs a high risk of them slipping to their friends.

Have 2 friends whose kids told classmates, trouble ensued.

Yup, lock that shit up and lie about it until the gig is up. Imagine sitting in prison because your 9 year old wanted to impress their friends with a secret. They dont need to know as there is no benefit in telling them.



Just apply this..."What is the best thing that can happen" (I try to use this as much as possible all the time)

If the "best" thing that can happen is they keep quiet and you dont get locked, then I'd say its a bad idea to tell them.

 

[londonfog]

Have 2 friends whose kids told classmates, trouble ensued.

Can't like this because it is a bad thing, but that is exactly what I'm talking about. Hell in some cases you better never piss your kids off.

 

[st0wandgrow]

I hope it never does happen to you , but everyone can't take that risk

Have 2 friends whose kids told classmates, trouble ensued.

I might take a different approach if I were living in a state that didnt have medical marijuana legislation. As it stands though with the size of my garden, it would be next to impossible to hide it from them. A little closet grow would be easy to hide, but 500sf of grow rooms, not so much.

 

[Justin-case]

McD is just planning on installing self service ordering stations. Nothing exotic. It will replace maybe two people at the front counter who really just pushed buttons anyway. It's more like replacing the elevator operator than anything else. To call this an action driven by a $15 minimum wage is mendacious. This change was going to happen anyway because those people at the counter don't add value. I wouldn't mind it if other restaurants made this conversion. Fewer lines, I punch in what I want and pick it up when ready. Not that big a deal.

The real argument is whether or not $15 minimum wage increase will cause unemployment and inflation. Neither of these truthy-isms are factual.

From what I've experienced most minimum wage jobs that will be affected are in the food/service industry. A friend in the business told me that with a dozen plus employees the dollar increase last year cost her around three thousand extra a month (don't quote me, but it was significant) including increases to pay roll tax and insurance.Stating also that " people aren't going to pay 20 dollars for a burger " she has opted to get out of the restaurant biz and turn to catering with less employees.

I think we may see some dining habits change in the future. After all there was a time when we didn't eat out as regularly as we do now.

As far as robots go, the only bummer may be all the dry, loogie free burgers that they will be serving.

 

[UncleBuck]

You are a complete idiot

did i hit a nerve?

turns out trump voters have the highest rates of disability, the lowest incomes, the least amount of education, and huddle around in all white enclaves.

that should only offend you if you are an unskilled, low wage, uneducated, brokedick who has never met a minority in his life.

welcome back!

 

[UncleBuck]

Australia did it with smaller burgers and and min wage loopholes for teenagers.

well, you've concocted a nice "truthy" explanation for one country, now all you have to do is figure out a nice "truthy" explanation for about 4 dozen more now.

how the hell do they all pay a living minimum wage and yet have about the same price on their big mac?

it's like magnets.

 

[spandy]

McD is just planning on installing self service ordering stations. Nothing exotic. It will replace maybe two people at the front counter who really just pushed buttons anyway. It's more like replacing the elevator operator than anything else. To call this an action driven by a $15 minimum wage is mendacious. This change was going to happen anyway because those people at the counter don't add value. I wouldn't mind it if other restaurants made this conversion. Fewer lines, I punch in what I want and pick it up when ready. Not that big a deal.

The real argument is whether or not $15 minimum wage increase will cause unemployment and inflation. Neither of these truthy-isms are factual.

What happens when overnight skilled workers are making the same pay as burger boy? See that hamburger produced by a minimum wage worker you posted, imagine an EMT with the same pay as the people producing that garbage...

 

[UncleBuck]

What happens when overnight skilled workers are making the same pay as burger boy? See that hamburger produced by a minimum wage worker you posted, imagine an EMT with the same pay as the people producing that garbage...

yeah, i bet people with medical degrees suddenly flock to burger king.

you are one retarded neo-nazi.

yes, i am aware that is redundant.

 

[NLXSK1]

100% right.

It's usually publicly traded companies too. I swear the advent of the stock market is going to be the downfall of civilization. Once a company goes public, everything is out the window. They don't give a shit about their employees, customers, the enviornment. Nothing. All that matters is the bottom line, and growth. More more more. They are beholden to their share holders at the expense of everything else.

I try to avoid big companies like this at all costs and spend my money with local companies.

There shareholders are people who lent them money so they would get interest on it. The amount of interest a company pays determines the amount of working capital it gets from investors.

Companies also dont want to piss off the public or do things that are bad for public relations.

You like to talk about one side of the coin while pretending the other side doesnt exist.

 

[Fogdog]

From what I've experienced most minimum wage jobs that will be affected are in the food/service industry. A friend in the business told me that with a dozen plus employees the dollar increase last year cost her around three thousand extra a month (don't quote me, but it was significant) including increases to pay roll tax and insurance.Stating also that " people aren't going to pay 20 dollars for a burger " she has opted to get out of the restaurant biz and turn to catering with less employees.

I think we may see some dining habits change in the future. After all there was a time when we didn't eat out as regularly as we do now.

As far as robots go, the only bummer may be all the dry, loogie free burgers that they will be serving.

The installation of kiosks by McD is a red herring for those opposing the minimum wage. McD was going to do it anyway. It just makes too much sense to enter orders using a screen rather than having an employee do the same for a customer.

Regarding your objections to increasing the minimum wage, it's easy to say "I know somebody who said...". The restaurant biz is incredibly difficult and I'm sure that there were other factors that led to her decision to step out of the game. It sounds like she's bitter-- her $20 burger comment is off the rails. Denmark has a $20/hr minimum wage and a McD burger there sells for about 50 cents more than in the US, where the minimum wage now stands at about $7.25. Just saying that there is a lot more rhetoric around this subject than reality.

The effect of minimum wage on employment and wages is mostly an academic theoretical topic. Very little hard data exists. The right uses some really old and disproven theory that claims jobs will disappear. Studies have never shown this to be true, most notably one by the Congressional Budget Office http://cbo.gov/sites/default/files/cbofiles/attachments/44995-MinimumWage.pdf

Seattle is staging wage hikes to eventually reach $15. This is a real world situation that has drawn ire and attention from the conservative right who pounce on every little statement as "proof" of a disaster. The experiment is in its early stages and in fact not an Armageddon nor a paradise for workers in the lower wage brackets. A pizza operation closing down made national headlines in the right wing bloggosphere. I'm not belittling a small business owner for closing but don't understand why her operation couldn't make it while most businesses are doing fine through the transition. A study on Seattle area grocery stores showed very small effect if any on prices compared to stores outside of the Seattle area who aren't affected by the wage hikes. Seattle is doing a good job of documenting the effects of this increase. They are only one year into the real world trial and so far, hopes by right wingers of disaster are met with disappointment on their part.
https://evans.uw.edu/sites/default/files/HOvIV 1-27-16.pdf