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Where are teenagers getting paid minimum wage for these jobs though? Where I live fast food jobs now start at $15/hr, not because of any laws, but because you s

Where are teenagers getting paid minimum wage for these jobs though? Where I live fast food jobs now start at $15/hr, not because of any laws, but because you simply can't really get anyone cheaper than that. There have been tons of articles recently about how rising fast food prices are causing people to consider it a "luxury", and a huge part of those rising prices are rising wage costs. Where I live all the McDonald's now have kiosks inside for orders and fewer cashiers. I absolutely think shaving labor costs is something all fast food joints are interested in. I do agree with the other comment that drive-through workers multitask (scooping fries, filling drinks, etc.), so I'm not sure how much savings you'll get just from order automation.

moose_man 2y ago
The labor costs are not what's causing the price rises, the CEO have said so themselves on earnings calls. Also the costs of implementing the system at all restaurants when you have stuff like Kiosks already makes it overkill. They've already automated as much of the experience as is practical with AI's current limitations.
- StanislavPetrov 2y ago
  >The labor costs are not what's causing the price rises, the CEO have said so themselves on earnings calls. Labor costs at every segment in the supply chain are a factor. Warehouse workers, truck drivers, produce producers, ect. The price of everything that McDonald's (and everyone else) uses is higher in part because of these greatly increased labor costs across the board.
  - piva00 2y ago
    They are but if you look at McDonald's gross profits charts you'll see that profit has grown quarter over quarter since 2021 [0]. Prices would have increased less if it was purely caused by labour cost increases across the supply chain. It's the usual greed. [0] https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/MCD/mcdonalds/gross-profit https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/MCD/mcdonalds/gros...
dangus 2y ago
Perhaps just a turn of phrase, as they are very close to minimum wage and some of the lowest paid jobs you can get. The point is that you can hire real live humans for not that much money.

moose_man 2y ago

The labor costs are not what's causing the price rises, the CEO have said so themselves on earnings calls. Also the costs of implementing the system at all restaurants when you have stuff like Kiosks already makes it overkill. They've already automated as much of the experience as is practical with AI's current limitations.

StanislavPetrov 2y ago
>The labor costs are not what's causing the price rises, the CEO have said so themselves on earnings calls. Labor costs at every segment in the supply chain are a factor. Warehouse workers, truck drivers, produce producers, ect. The price of everything that McDonald's (and everyone else) uses is higher in part because of these greatly increased labor costs across the board.
- piva00 2y ago
  They are but if you look at McDonald's gross profits charts you'll see that profit has grown quarter over quarter since 2021 [0]. Prices would have increased less if it was purely caused by labour cost increases across the supply chain. It's the usual greed. [0] https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/MCD/mcdonalds/gross-profit https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/MCD/mcdonalds/gros...

dangus 2y ago

Perhaps just a turn of phrase, as they are very close to minimum wage and some of the lowest paid jobs you can get. The point is that you can hire real live humans for not that much money.