The iconic food franchise McDonald’s plans to reintroduce bagel sandwiches on their menu to offset California’s wage hike for fast food workers, Bloomberg reported Friday.
One McDonald’s franchisee group characterized the law behind the wage hike as a “devastating financial blow” and the franchise assembled a “Rise and Dominate” task force to brainstorm ideas about how to mitigate the damage, the outlet noted.
Bagel sandwiches — a fan-favorite breakfast item — have been reintroduced at McDonald’s locations in California as part of a plan to boost store traffic https://t.co/zPEAYsMnd6
— Bloomberg (@business) April 12, 2024
“This team has gathered best practices from around the world where municipalities have managed wage increases and will pilot innovative short- and long-term solutions for California,” McDonald’s said in a statement, according to Bloomberg. It was this group that came up with the idea of reintroducing bagels to the menu as they hypothesized that this act would attract diners after $15 million in advertising was spent on the product, the outlet noted. (RELATED: Restaurant Partially Owned By Newsom Is Reportedly Paying Employees Below California’s New Minimum Wage)
The franchise is also introducing measures like a new scheduling system, new communications tools, advancing better traffic projections and data on the items customers tend to order during the day, the outlet reported. These measures are expected to boost sales by 10% and allow the company to break even, according to two people familiar with the plan, Bloomberg noted.
California’s new law on minimum wage that took effect Monday guarantees fast food employees at least $20 per hour, The Associated Press (AP) reported. Exceptions to the law are companies with less than 60 locations in the state, food services that work with public schools and restaurants that sell bread as a stand-alone item. Some companies like Pizza Hut and Round Table Pizza have already laid off workers in preparation for the law, The Wall Street Journal noted.