Political activist Jon Cooper recently commented on Donald Trump’s prospects of securing employment at McDonald's. The former Suffolk County senator took to X to post about Trump's felony convictions, claiming that the former President lacks the credentials to get work at the fast food giant.
The assertion comes shortly after Trump walked into Pennsylvania McDonald’s to work as a french fry attendant. The move was a barb at his Democratic opponent, Kamala Harris, who claimed to have worked at a restaurant during her college years. Meanwhile, this has left people wondering whether McDonald’s offers employment to those convicted of felonies.
Does McDonald’s Actually Hire Convicted Felons?
McDonald’s does recruit people with felony records, but the conditions may differ depending on the location. A 2021 survey by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) shows that McDonald's assesses applicants on a case-by-case basis while hiring. The survey further revealed that 96% of McDonald's organizations permit franchise locations to set up their own hiring policies for applicants with criminal records.
However, per McDonald's official statements, every potential candidate is subjected to a criminal check. However, the SHRM survey reveals that only 73% of McDonald's franchise establishments perform this check regularly, while this is true for 95% of corporate stores.
A former HR manager who worked in the recruitment industry for 12 years detailed their experience in an article published in History Tools in August 2024. They observed that about 70% of McDonald's fast food restaurants in the United States are franchised; hence, every store owner has the freedom to employ people as they desire.
The alleged HR manager stated that 65% of the McDonald's franchise establishments may give a chance to non-violent felons, which further depends upon the type of crime committed and how long ago the person was convicted. By contrast, the overall average indicated that fewer corporate-owned McDonald's stores recruit felons–approximately 15%.
Context of Cooper’s Comments
Cooper’s latest statement throws light on the fact that Trump, as the current Republican presidential candidate, was found guilty of 34 felony charges on May 30 for submitting false business records concerning hush money he paid to Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential campaign.
Nonetheless, this assertion is somewhat misleading. Although many employers, including food chain restaurants, may have the right to refuse to employ someone who was involved in a felony case or has a criminal record, the fast food behemoth has a policy that permits the employer to hire those with a felony conviction.
Trump's McDonald's Stunt
On October 20, 2024, Trump visited McDonald's in Feasterville-Trevose, where he demonstrated working at the fast-food chain. As many claimed it to be “staged,” The Washington Post reported that the establishment remained shut to the public when Trump was there. All the customers served by Trump were escorted in by the Secret Service Agents and arranged beforehand.
This visit, a part of his campaign strategy, sought to dismiss Harris’ claims of working there while studying at Howard University. Trump has continued to claim that the Vice President never worked for any of the stores in question, using such terms as “fake” to describe her infamous narrative. The former President stated via the drive-thru window on Sunday, as reported by Newsweek:
"I've now worked 15 minutes more than Kamala... She never worked here."
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On the other hand, Harris’s campaign has stated that she was employed at a franchise on Central Avenue in Alameda, California, during the summer of 1983, the year after her freshman year at Howard University. Last month, in September 2024, in an interview with MSNBC channel, she said:
“Part of the reason I even talk about having worked at McDonald’s is because there are people who work at McDonald’s in our country who are trying to raise a family”.
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