McDonald’s Class Action Says Workers Aren’t Protected From COVID-19

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Update:

• McDonald’s Corporation and two Illinois franchisees (Lexi Management LLC and DAK4 LLC) filed a lawsuit against McDonald’s insurer Austin Mutual Insurance Company arguing that the insurance company must also be held liable for defense costs in Taynarvis Massey’s class action lawsuit against the fast food company.
• All entities have informed the court of a settlement agreement between them, although the details of the deal were not yet detailed in court documents. However, the settlement should dismiss the action. 
• Massey’s class action lawsuit, which included other McDonalds’ employees and their live-in family members, was dismissed in Illinois state court in August 2021.

(05/27/2022)

McDonald’s workers say they are forced to work in close proximity without proper protective equipment in a class action lawsuit demanding the fast food chain change its practices during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nine McDonald’s employees who work at locations in Cook County, Ill. have joined the class action lawsuit as plaintiffs.

The complaint cites Johns Hopkins University data for Cook County as ranking first in the U.S. for reported coronavirus cases and fourth in deaths related to the disease. Despite these grim numbers, McDonald’s restaurants in the area have allegedly failed to take steps to protect their workers.

The plaintiffs say that they and other workers are not being provided with protective equipment or hand sanitizer. In addition, McDonald’s has allegedly failed to implement any safety training for its workers and has failed to enforce safety protocols.

One McDonald’s worker claims that she contracted COVID-19 after being exposed to coworkers who took long sick leaves. The plaintiff says that she was never told that she had been in contact with coworkers who had the virus. Additionally, she claims that none of her McDonald’s coworkers were informed that she had contracted the virus through official channels.

Other employees say they are not being provided an adequate supply of masks or gloves, with some claiming that they were simply told to cover their sneezes to combat the virus.

“Plaintiffs bring this case because, in the face of these severe risks, the steps Defendants are taking to contain COVID-19 are plainly inadequate,” states the complaint. “Defendants have a responsibility to their workers, customers, and the public to ensure that the restaurants do not become a hub for spread of the virus.”

The Cook County area plaintiffs say that, on a national level, McDonald’s “has purported to adopt a comprehensive and effective response to COVID-19, on a centralized national basis.” However, this plan has not been effectively implemented to protect workers at their McDonald’s restaurant.

“At the stores where the worker plaintiffs are employed, McDonald’s has failed to take adequate steps in response to the pandemic,” contends the McDonald’s class action lawsuit. “These stores are operating in disregard of expert recommendations and government guidance on how to best protect workers and customers from spread of the disease.”

The plaintiffs say that McDonald’s alleged failure to properly protect its workers amounts to a public nuisance under Illinois law.

The McDonald’s class action lawsuit is seeking an injunction requiring area McDonald’s restaurants to propagate and enforce adequate safety measures to help protect workers and the community against the spread of COVID-19.

According to the complaint, the rate of COVID-19 transmission in Cook County, Ill. has remained stubbornly high. Just this month, the state’s department of public health reported more than 3,000 new cases and a devastating 138 deaths in one day – May 14, 2020. Deaths attributed to COVID-19 have ranged from 48 to 130 in the proceeding days, according to the health agency.

The complaint also points out that the virus is “highly contagious,” with the most common sources of transmission being close interaction with an infected person or contact with a contaminated surface.

The spread of the disease becomes more likely the longer the duration of the contact.

Terrifyingly, those with COVID-19 may not show symptoms of the disease for many weeks. Others may develop mild symptoms or none at all, points out the complaint. However, the coronavirus can be devastating to others, especially the elderly or those with underlying medical conditions.

The class action lawsuit cites the Centers for Communicable Diseases (CDC) guidance that recommends social distancing to stymie the spread of COVID-19.

These measures include limiting human-to-human contact, and when required to meet, keeping 6 to 10 feet of distance between people. The CDC also recommends aggressive hand washing and sanitation efforts, say the plaintiffs who also note that the agency has called out fast-food workers as at particular risk for contracting the virus.

“As compared to other businesses, the McDonald’s business model poses a special risk. Because McDonald’s provides quick service food with a high customer volume, its workers perform their duties in a cramped, assembly-line style kitchen that leaves little room to distance from co-workers,” alleges the McDonald’s class action lawsuit.

“Further, McDonald’s drive-thrus and counter service often require close interaction between workers and customers, as customers place orders, exchange payment, and workers hand customers their order…because McDonald’s workers are unable to distance themselves from their colleagues while on the job, it is all the more important for workers to have access to necessary personal protective equipment.”

For its part, McDonald’s has responded by calling the class action lawsuit claims “inaccurate characterizations” of the “actual realities in our 14,00 restaurants around the country,” in an emailed statement to the Chicago Tribune. The company also says that it has enough gloves, masks, and other protective equipment, according to the report.

Are you a McDonald’s worker? Have you gone to a McDonald’s restaurant? What do you think of the class action lawsuit’s claims about virus safety? Tell us in the comments section below.

The lead plaintiffs are represented by David P. Dean, Daniel M. Rosenthal, Ryan E. Griffin, and Michael P. Ellement of James & Hoffman PC, and Barry M. Bennett, Stephen A. Yokich, and Elizabeth L. Rowe of Dowd Bloch Bennett Cervone Auerbach & Yokich.

The McDonald’s Workers Class Action Lawsuit is Massey, et al. v. McDonald’s Corporation, et al., Case No. 2020-CH-04247, in the Circuit Court of Cook County Illinois, County Department Chancery Division.

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