The low wage--no benefits compensation "packages" that McDonald's and most other fast-food chains pay their restaurant workforce is costing U.S. taxpayers a lot of money. In fact, just the top 10 larg...

est chains combined cost the U.S. government $3.8 billion in 2012. The reason? Low-wage workers who don’t receive benefits have to rely on public assistance to afford health care, food and other necessities. More than half of all fast-food workers participate in public assistance programs like Medicaid and SNAP (food stamps), programs that are funded by taxpayer dollars.