McDonald’s to close offices ahead of layoff notices: report

Fast food giant McDonald’s is temporarily shuttering its U.S. offices as the company readies to let employees know about layoffs, according to a new Wall Street Journal report. 

McDonald’s told U.S. employees and some international staff to work from home Monday through Wednesday so the company can “communicate key decisions related to roles and staffing levels across the organization,” according to an internal email sent last week, the news outlet reported.

The fast food chain had announced corporate reorganization efforts to up its speed and efficiency back in January and had set April 3 as the date by which they’d share more details with employees. 

“We want to ensure the comfort and confidentiality of our people during the notification period,” McDonald’s said of the temporary office closures, according to the report. 

The McDonald’s layoffs come as companies across sectors move to slash jobs and cut costs amid a difficult economic landscape of high interest rates, high inflation and concerns about a possible recession.

Several tech-industry companies, including Amazon, Facebook parent company Meta, Twitter and Microsoft have announced layoffs in recent months. McDonald’s competitor Wendy’s also announced restructuring and possible corporate layoffs back in January.

The Wall Street Journal reported that McDonald’s declined to comment on how many employees would be affected by the layoffs. The Hill has reached out to McDonald’s for comment.