Working for McDonald's in Europe: The Unequal Struggle?

Abstract

The McDonald's Corporation is not only the largest system-wide sales service in the world, it is a phenomenon in its own right, and is now recognized as the most famous brand in the world. By providing a detailed analysis of the extent to which the McDonald's Corporation adapts or imposes its labour relations policies in Europe, this volume represents a real life case study revealing the interaction between a global multi-national enterprise and the regulatory systems of a number of different European countries.

Key features include: an overview of the McDonald's Corporation's development and structure; an analysis of its corporate culture and the issues of franchising; an examination of key union strategies, including systems of co-determination, consultation and collective-bargaining; and a chapter dealing specifically with European legislation, in particular the McDonald's European Works Council.

The author systematically analyses the conflict between the McDonald's Corporation and the industrial relations systems of the European countries within which it operates, and exposes this conflict as an 'unequal struggle' between economic liberalism and collectivism.