McDonald’s is being sued in three states by workers who allege that the fast-food giant is systematically stealing the wages of tens of thousands of employees.

Seven lawsuits, some of them requesting class-action status, have been filed this week against the corporation and McDonald’s franchise-owners in California, Michigan and New York, lawyers announced on Thursday afternoon.

The lawsuits allege that thousands of McDonald’s workers have their pay pushed below the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, through a variety of practices. Some are not paid for all the time they work, some have wages docked in order to pay for their uniforms and some are made to wait for hours until busy periods before they are allowed to clock in, the complaints allege.



“These suits have been filed to stop this widespread wage theft,” said Joseph Sellers, one of the attorneys for the workers, in a conference call. “They highlight a broad array of unlawful pay practices, which together reflect ways in which McDonald’s has withheld pay from its low-paid workers in order to enrich the corporation and its shareholders.”

Heidi Barker Sa Shekhem, a spokeswoman for McDonald’s, said in an emailed statement the company was “currently reviewing the allegations in the lawsuits”.

“McDonald’s and our independent owner-operators share a concern and commitment to the well-being and fair treatment of all people who work in McDonald’s restaurants,” she said. “McDonald’s and our independent franchisees are committed to undertaking a comprehensive investigation of the allegations and will take any necessary actions as they apply to our respective organisations.”

Representatives for the plaintiffs stressed on Thursday that McDonald’s made more than $5.5bn in profit a year on revenues of about $28bn, and that the total annual pay package for Don Thompson, its chief executive, amounts to about $13.75m.

They said that if granted class-action status, the lawsuits could apply to more than 25,000 workers. They declined to estimate a total for the compensation being sought in back-pay but said McDonald’s could also be forced to pay extra damages and legal penalties.

Across three lawsuits filed in California, workers allege that McDonald’s bosses there failed to pay workers for all the hours they worked, prevented them from taking breaks or time out for meals, and even altered records in order to remove hours worked from time-sheets.

“When I took a job at McDonald’s, I knew I wouldn’t be making a lot of money,” Jason Hughes, a plaintiff in one of the California suits, told reporters during the conference call. “But I thought a well known company like McDonald’s would treat me fairly – at the very least follow the law. We have brought this lawsuit because neither has happened.”

In Michigan, two lawsuits filed against McDonald’s and two Detroit-area franchise owners allege that bosses forced workers to buy their own uniforms and frequently made employees who arrived on time for their shifts wait without pay until a number of customers arrived at the restaurant.

“McDonald’s franchisees closely monitor the ratio of labour costs to revenues,” lawyers said in a news release about the lawsuits. “When it exceeds a corporate-set target, managers tell workers arriving for their shifts to wait for up to an hour to clock in, and sometimes direct workers who have already clocked in for scheduled shifts to clock out for extended breaks until the target ratio is again achieved.”

Meanwhile a lawsuit filed in New York alleges that low-paid workers were forced to spend their own time and money cleaning their uniforms, sometimes three times a week, in violation of New York state laws requiring firms to pay employees for uniform maintenance.

“Because McDonald’s restaurants pay so little, forcing workers to clean their Golden Arches uniforms on their own dime drives many workers’ wages below the legal minimum,” said Jim Reif, an attorney who filed the New York lawsuit.

The lawsuits are being assisted by a union-backed campaign that has been pushing since 2012 for a rise in the federal minimum wage to $15 and the right for fast-food workers to form trade unions without retaliation.