quote:

Originally posted by konata88:
I wonder what Newscum is getting out of this.

Something else for him to point at and say "See what I did? When I'm President I'll make that nationwide!" when he runs for POTUS, maybe.

quote:

Originally posted by konata88:
I wonder what Newscum is getting out of this.

Votes and campaign cash. Many public employee union contracts are based on multiples of minimum wage. Job X pays 2.3x minimum wage. Raise the fast food minimum and the minimum has to follow. Why should the retail cashier make less than the burger flipper? Even if the actual minimum doesn’t increase employers will have to match to keep employees. Why work the register at Walmart when McD’s pays $2/hr more? Then the SEIU janitor that works for some county gets an auto raise. 2.3x $18/hr becomes 2.3x $20/hr which is about $12k/yr for doing nothing. The bullshit that starts here seeps everywhere else. Remember a few years back how $15/hr was the big demand? Well, now it’s $20/hr. He’s going to run for president and sell Sugar Daddy Gavin getting people money.

The obvious solution is for each restaurant to invest in an oven. Bread comes parbaked and frozen. Just bake and serve. That's how Corner Bakery does it.

quote:

Originally posted by Sig2340:

quote:

Originally posted by rduckwor:
"Here's your Big Mac Sir. That will be $17.70."

$17.70?

Must be a sale on Big Macs.

I expect half of the fast food franchises will be shuttered within nine months because eating fast food will become instantly unaffordable.

One might think that was the plan all along.

Years ago when I was still working in the fire protection industry I was talking to an owner of a McDonalds. Somehow the subject came up about how much money an owner makes.

He told me for him at the time he owned two stores, works about 50 to 60 or hours a week or more and only cleared $50,000 a year for himself. This was back in the 90s. He told me the way to make money was to own a bunch of stores.
He told me his biggest cost was labor.

He said people thought because he owned a McDonalds he was a millionaire, he wasn't.

Most places start around that here, doesn’t sound like a big deal. If anything it sounds like grand standing for what is already standard.

Assuming 2 shifts, with 8 workers and a little quick math that is a tad over $500K in labor cost per year. $2M robotic system that does it all with a 4 year ROI wouldn't be out of the question at this point.

quote:

Originally posted by chellim1:
But unlike the fast food wage increase — which Newsom helped negotiate — the governor has not said if he would sign the raise for health care workers. The issue is complicated by the state’s Medicaid program, which is the main source of revenue for many hospitals. The Newsom administration has estimated the wage increase would cost the state billions of dollars in increased payments to health care providers.

This illustrates the absurdity of "government economics" (which I am well aware may be an oxymoron). California is concerned about raising healthcare wages because the state would have to foot the bill for the increased labor costs. But the money that the state is wary of spending comes from taxpayers--the same taxpayers who are paying for compulsory wage increases in every other sector.

OMG... automating a McDonalds could cost millions of jobs!!

https://www.foxbusiness.com/te...ll-cut-millions-jobs

McDonald's unveils first automated location, social media worried it will cut 'millions' of jobs Customers can fully avoid interacting with any humans during their order and pickup



McDonald’s opened its first automated restaurant, with machines handling everything from taking orders to delivering the food – and dividing opinions everywhere.

"When you step inside the test restaurant concept, you'll notice it's considerably smaller than a traditional McDonald's restaurant in the U.S.," McDonald’s said in a statement. "Why? The features—inside and outside—are geared toward customers who are planning to dine at home or on the go."

The Fort Worth, Texas, location uses technology to minimize human interaction when ordering and picking up food. The restaurant features an "Order Ahead Lane" where customers can receive orders by conveyor belt, Newsweek reported.

The initiative is part of McDonald’s "Accelerating the Arches" plan, which works to grow and innovate the customer experience, but not everyone is pleased with the direction the restaurant chain has chosen.

One thing is certain- none of the automated systems will hop the counter for a dust up, throw food at customers, or shoot at them during disagreements.

My guess is a robot can accurately make change and my coffee will have the appropriate Splenda/creamer in it. And not have a shitty attitude.

/sarc on
Let's look at the bright side.

It's a bonanza for the clerks handing out unemployment benefits to people whose marginally-useful-at-minimum-wage skills become unviable now.

It's a plus for engineers developing automation to replace the repetitive work that those folks used to do. And they'll earn big bucks!

The automation companies employing those engineers will rake it in, installing those machines.

Customers won't get shot at by the machines (well, at least not the base model ones) for arguing about getting screwed at the drive-through.

And, hey, those unemployed people will miss those years learning basic job skills to move up the ladder...so more under-earning Democrat voters, kept dependent on the state, to keep the flame alive for years and years!

What's not to like?
/sarc off

This kind of crap is why I moved from CA two decades ago, with zero regrets. I feel sorry for the sane folks still stuck there.

The misplaced fast food workers may want to learn to code.

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
e is part of McDonald’s "Accelerating the Arches" plan, which works to grow and innovate the customer experience, but not everyone is pleased with the direction the restaurant chain has chosen.

I think if the technology had been there when the McDonald brothers had come up with their system in the 40's, you'd have been ordering from a machine right from jump. Their whole system was designed so that you ordered and paid, there was no wait for your food, you took your food and left. No seating. The technology is there now to let them finally start getting back to their roots.


The real problem with this stuff is if you're a skilled worker and working in a factory assembling stuff for $20/hr, even if you want to be loyal and keep your head down, this impacts you. Your company will lose people because they can't afford to bump their pay rates to compete with the lower level jobs that are getting higher wages, because why bust your ass in a dangerous setting doing demanding physical work when you can flip burgers or work a fryer? Your company won't be able to replace people they lose because $20/hr doesn't look like decent pay anymore when you can get that at any Wendy's. Your workload increases for the same pay because well, you're still there. I've been through this at two places, and I hear this same story from friends in the same strata.

Minumum wage needs to be minimum, not a living wage. This doesn't actually benefit anyone. If you're 40, and you've been at the same McDonald's since high school, well, your ass should be a general manager, not a fry cook.

quote:

just over $34,000 per year,

My mother's SS is not that much. She just turned 99

quote:

It's a bonanza for the clerks handing out unemployment benefits to people whose marginally-useful-at-minimum-wage skills become unviable now.

And, hey, those unemployed people will miss those years learning basic job skills to move up the ladder...so more under-earning Democrat voters, kept dependent on the state, to keep the flame alive for years and years!

Yeah... it's just vote buying with other people's money, and it's counter-productive.

Why should people work, when all they have to do is vote Democrat?

Curious - for the fully automated McD's, instead of hiring cooks and cashiers, they now have to hire people to maintain/repair the automation, sysadmin and software developers?

quote:

Originally posted by SpinZone:
It is already causing me to change my habits. I work 12 hour shifts and I like to go off site for lunch to get away from the company for a few.

I rarely go out for fast food during lunch and didn't realize how much things have cost until a coworker and I went out for Carl's Jr, and when we came back with our food, everyone was looking at us and commenting about how rich we must be for getting that.

Idiots, every last one of them. What a stupid thing to do. Now we get to see franchise owners go belly up. Let's see how many jobs this "saves" compared to those lost.